A Thousand Miles of Broken Arrows
by invalid-reality
Summary: Buffy's been gone for five years without a single word, but her reappearance will become the least of their worries as they face yet another big bad that threatens to pull their entire world apart...
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

The quiet of the night was pierced with the howling of a werewolf miles away. Dense fog and mist crawled across the grass, whipping around each headstone in the gentle breeze. She ran fast and hard, boots hitting the ground loudly as she dodged trees and headstones, desperately trying to lose them. She was outnumbered, ten to one. She didn't look back and kept her eyes up ahead, looking for a quicker escape than trying to outrun them.

Her first mistake had been entering the cemetery alone and gravely unarmed with only a stake in her jacket pocket and a small knife sheathed inside her left boot. Her second mistake was thinking the two vampires she found lurking behind a cluster of tress were alone. Her third mistake was provoking them, teasing them, taunting them before she dusted the first one, her confidence soaring, the adrenaline pushing her to her limits.

That's when things went downhill. The second vampire had started running before she could grab him and she took off, her favorite stake gripped firmly in her right hand, the adrenaline fueling her pursuit of the badly dressed vampire who should've been dust the instant she spotted him and his buddy. She was led straight into the middle of a group of vampires hanging around a small mausoleum. They saw her before she could backtrack, before she could escape without putting herself and her life at risk.

She fought back, it was what she did, who she was. Even outnumbered, she dusted three of them before she was surrounded. Ten large vampires were practically frothing at the mouth as they realized who she was, what she was. A slayer. The Chosen One.

The twelve foot high wall that surrounded the vast cemetery came into view just as the clouds broke open and allowed the full moon to shine down, illuminating a clearer path to the only way to escape the vampires chasing after her.

"Get her!"

"You won't get away, slayer!"

"She's mine!"

Her lungs were burning as she pushed herself to run harder, faster. She leapt and grabbed on to the top of the wall, her fingers slipping as she tried to pull herself up. Her boots slipped against the wet bricks as she tried to climb. Fear flooded through her when she felt a strong hand grip onto her ankle and pull her down. Landing on the ground in a heap, she scrambled to back away from the vampires quickly closing in on her.

"She killed Tarek," the one closest to her said as they cornered her against the wall. "She deserves to die a very slow, very painful death."

Gasping as she crawled backwards towards the wall, she stopped as her back hit the rough, wet bricks. Her stake was on the ground, too far to make a leap for it through the vampires that had her cornered like a scared little animal. Her knife, still sheathed inside her left boot was accessible, but she knew she wouldn't be able to move fast enough before one of the vampires grabbed her. With her breath catching in her throat, she slowly rose to her feet, her hands grasping at the wet, rough bricks behind her. Despite being cornered and fear flooding through her veins, dueling against the adrenaline rushing through her, she knew this wasn't it, that his wasn't the end. This wasn't how she was going to go out. Not at the hand of ten vampires twice the size of her, ganging on her, cornering her. No, she'd make it out of there alive and each and every one of them would be nothing more than dust in the wind.

"So," she said as a grin slipped across her lips as she stared at the vampires surrounding her. She didn't move as they looked at each other, some growling lowly. "Who is Tarek anyway? Was he the tall lanky one or the one who couldn't dress himself for this century?"

"Tarek is—was our master," the one closest to her said, snarling as he leaned in close to her, so close she could smell the blood and the stale cigarettes on his breath. "He made each and every one of us and now you are going to die."

"Do you know how many times I've heard lines similar to that? You are going to die, you're dead, I'm going to drink you dry and pick my teeth with your—"

"Who the _hell_ do you think you are?"

She gasped, the smirk never faltering as she tried to breathe even though the vampire had his meaty hands wrapped tightly around her neck. "I don't know," she gasped out as she gripped at his hands, trying desperately to get herself free. "Who do you think I am?"

She tightened her grip on the vampire's wrists and twisted her way out of the iron-clad hold he had her in. The sickening sound of each wrist snapping as she broke his bones reverberated throughout the heavy silence. Taking the stunned vampire by surprise, she grabbed a hold of his gnarly face and snapped his neck, pushing him away as he limply fell to the ground.

"One down, nine to go," she chuckled as she took a step forward and several vampire's stepped back. "So, which one of your boys are next, huh?"

"Bloody hell. It's _her_."

"Who?"

"Buffy Summers."

"Buffy Summers is dead, you morons."

She chuckled as she casually ran her fingers through her long blonde hair before placing her hands confidently on her hips. "Do I look dead to you?" She asked as she cocked her head to the side. "Yeah, I didn't think so."

* * *

Willow Rosenberg paced in front of her desk with a cup of tea in one hand, the other scrolling through the text messages on her phone. Of all the leads they'd had over the last five years, the last one had seemed to be the only promising one even though it was over a day old and there was no telling what had changed in the last twenty-four hours.

"Yes?" Willow said as a knock sounded on the open door of her office. "What can I do for you, Nadia?"

"We've received confirmation."

"Is it her?"

"Yes," Nadia replied and she handed Willow an envelope. "This was faxed about a half an hour ago. Visual confirmation, just as you requested."

"Thank you, Nadia."

The young slayer smiled before turning on her heels and exited out of Willow's office without another word. Willow waited until her office door was shut before she opened the envelope and pulled out the pictures.

For the last five years, ever since they all left Sunnydale, she'd been searching for Buffy. Not one word had been heard from Buffy since nearly a week after they started the long drive across the country to Cleveland. She'd left in the middle of the night. She never said goodbye, not even to Dawn. No note, no reason or explanation. She was just gone. Every new lead led them somewhere different and every time someone would get there, she'd disappear again.

Willow looked at the dozen pictures that Nadia had brought to her. Each one clearly showed Buffy walking down a street in what she knew was London, England. In the pictures, Buffy looked happy and healthy, some even showed her smiling as she passed people in the street. The last few showed her at night, inside an old cemetery, walking inside alone. The last picture was blurry, the darkness of the night didn't help, but she could just faintly see that Buffy was surrounded by vampires, cornered.

Dropping the pictures onto her cluttered desk, she grabbed the phone and quickly dialed a familiar number. Her hands were shaking as the line continued to ring, and ring, with no voice mail picking up. Just as Willow was about to hang up, she heard the soft click as the call was picked up on the other line.

"She's fine. She's not, you know, dead or anything."

Willow sighed in relief. "Is she still—"

"In London? Far as I know she still is. I've got a few girls tailing her right now."

"Faith?" Willow asked after a few minutes of heavy silence over the line. "When were those pictures taken, exactly?"

"Late last night. Helped her out of a jam too. Pretty sure she never saw me," Faith replied and from the sound of her voice, she was beyond exhausted. "You know what I've been hearing, Will? People think that she's dead."

"People?"

"Vamps mostly. Heard one of them say it last night to her. Set something off inside her too. Never seen her fight like that."

"Like how?"

Faith chuckled and it was all the answer that Willow needed to hear. "It was a trip, for sure."

"Keep me up to date?" Willow asked and she couldn't help but smile when she heard Faith chuckle again.

"You know I will," Faith replied. "I'm gonna go. Been out all night and I'm beat."

"Goodbye," Willow said softly. "And thank you for doing this, Faith."

"It's no big. Figured if anyone is gonna get close enough to her, it's gonna have to be me. I'll be in touch, Will."

Willow smiled sadly as she placed the phone back down on the receiver. The quietness of her office was usually something she welcomed, but not today. She needed something, anything to drown out the thoughts that thundered through her mind.

Faith going after the latest lead they had on Buffy hadn't been the original plan. They had slayers, well trained slayers, stationed all over the world. The squad in London was run exclusively by Andrew Wells and Rona as the lead slayer there. Yet, when word came in early the day before that the squad had spotted Buffy slaying a handful of vampires, Faith packed a bag and was on the next flight to London. Like Willow, Faith hadn't given up on trying to find Buffy over the last couple of years, not like the others had. Willow was confident that if anyone could find her and get some answers out of her, it'd be Faith.

Five years had changed a lot of things. The battle on the Sunnydale Hellmouth had changed the course of the rest of their lives and the spell that Willow cast on the scythe had made thousands of young girls slayers far before their time. It took them six months to get their bearings once they arrived in Cleveland, it being harder to adjust to a new place since each and every one of them were still distressed by Buffy's sudden and unexplained disappearance. As time went on, Willow never gave up on trying to find her. The others, however, stopped caring, stopped looking for her, stopped holding on to hope with every new lead that came in that they'd finally find her and bring her home. All Willow wanted was answers. It was why she still hadn't given up.

Dawn didn't care, but Willow knew she did, deep down. She never asked about Buffy, never talked about her, and if Buffy was ever mentioned, she left the room. Xander was the same, but he stayed when Dawn walked away. Giles never expressed any thoughts or feelings when it came to Buffy, always busying himself with paperwork, research, and schedules, never asking if she'd been spotted or if she'd made contact. Kennedy was indifferent, mostly because she supported Willow and the decisions she made when it came to Buffy, but she never talked about her either, and only listened when Willow did.

This time would be different. It _had_ to be. This time she'd finally get the answers she'd been looking for since the night that Buffy left.

* * *

"She didn't suspect anything unusual, did she?"

Faith sighed as she laid back on the soft bed and put her hands behind her head. "No, she didn't suspect a damn thing."

"Good. Now, where were we?"

Faith couldn't help but grin as her lover ran her soft hands over her bare stomach, eagerly looking forward to getting back to what they'd been doing before her phone started to ring. Soft lips met hers in an intense kiss, the kind that sent waves of pleasure flooding through her body. Faith moved her hands to her lover's shoulders and smoothed them down the length of her back.

She hated lying, hated sneaking around, hated keeping secrets from the people who had taken her in after Sunnydale and learned to trust her all over again. But this, this was worth it, those stolen moments that didn't come around too often. _She_ was worth it, worth keeping secrets for, worth lying to her friends for, worth pretending to be looking for her when she was really just cooped up in a motel room with the woman she'd hopelessly fallen in love with years ago.

Faith kissed her harder, deeper, pulling her flush against her body before rolling around on the bed and ending up on top, just where she loved to be most. Her hands touched places that elicited soft, breathy moans and she loved the sound of her name as it fluttered past her lover's lips, whispering across her own.

Faith slipped a hand between her lover's legs as she pulled back from her lips, watching as the pleasure showed on her face as Faith slipped two fingers deftly inside her warm, wet cunt. Her lips trailed down her lover's neck, teeth nipping at soft, warm flesh. Each thrust of her fingers elicited a breathy moan, a gasp, a pleasurable sigh. It'd been far too long since they'd been together and after today, it'd likely be months before they found each other again.

It was just the way it was. The way it had to be. Because that was what _she_ wanted.

Her lover gasped as Faith's teeth scraped against a hard nipple, her back arching as she sought out more. Faith languidly licked and sucked her nipple, fucking her slowly with her fingers, drawing out every ounce of pleasure that she could, making it last for as long as she could, making this just another fleeting memory they could share secretly between them for however long it would last.

Sunlight suddenly flooded through the partially drawn drapes, flooding the darkness of the room. The smell of fresh rain filled the air, rain and sex and stale cigarette smoke. For now, this room, this place, was their sanctuary and the only thing that existed inside of it was each other.

"Faith," she moaned as Faith trailed her tongue down the length of her toned stomach, stopping briefly to kiss along the faded scars that marred her otherwise perfect skin.

Continuing her gradual descent down her lover's body, she settled between thin, yet strong legs as she slipped her fingers from out of the warm, wet confines of her lover's pussy. The whimper that escaped past parted lips only fueled Faith on, and she purposely, leisurely took her time in worshipping the woman she never meant to fall in love with. She breathed in deeply, inhaling the musky scent of her lover's arousal before dipping out her tongue for a teasing taste.

Soft, breathy moans filled the quietness of the room as she licked over her lover's pussy, teasing her, pleasuring her in every way her lover needed and wanted. Yet, she held back, not wanting to send her tumbling over the edge just yet. With lust filled eyes, Faith watched as her lover closed her eyes tight and gripped onto the sheets that somehow, miraculously, stayed on the bed.

"Please."

"Please, what?" Faith asked as she pulled back slightly and licked over her lips.

"Don't tease me anymore, Faith."

"You love it."

A coy smile curled across her lips as she leaned up on her elbows to look down at Faith. "I do," she smiled and she reached out to stroke Faith's hair gently. "And I love you."

Faith pulled back a little more, just out of reach. Three little words she'd never heard before had thrown her completely off balance, caught her off guard. She sat back and ran her fingers through her hair, at loss for words completely.

"Faith?"

"What?"

"I—"

"What do you want me to say, Buffy? You want me to say that I love you too? How can I say those words when you want to stay gone, B?" Faith asked, daring to utter her name when she'd promised before she never would.

"Buffy Summers is dead."

"No, she's not, she's just pretending to be," Faith said harshly as she slipped off the bed and walked over to the small window, slamming it shut. "What the hell are you running from, B?"

Buffy shook her head as tears brimmed in her eyes. "Get out," she said lowly, a dangerous tone to her voice as she grabbed Faith's clothes off the floor and threw them at her. "Get out!"

"I'm going to tell them," Faith said as she pulled her shirt over her head and smoothed it down her body. "I'm done lying for you, B."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Then tell me what the fuck it is that you're running from, Buffy! All these years and you never once told me what made you leave like that in the middle of the night. You left the people who loved you, cared about you, people that were family to you. You owed it to them to at least have left a note, an explanation. You should've said goodbye to Dawn and you didn't and you know why? Because you're a selfish fucking bitch—"

The slap across the face resonated through her entire body. Her cheek stung and burned hot where Buffy's hand connected. Her own tears filled her eyes as she staggered backwards, raising a hand to her swollen cheek.

"If you love me like you say you do, you won't let me leave without telling me why," Faith said softly, her hands shaking as she tried to pull on her jeans with ease.

"Me," Buffy uttered quietly, her eyes trailing down to stare blankly at the floor. "I was running from _me_, who I used to be, and I was so afraid of who I was going to become."

"And now?"

Buffy shook her head as tears began to fall. "I can't go there, I can't face them," she whispered. "All the things I've done I…all the time that's passed…what you and I have together, the secrets I've made you keep…I don't know if they'll—"

"What?" Faith asked gently, stepping closer to Buffy, the throbbing, burning pain in her cheek suddenly forgotten, gone. "What is it, B?"

"What if they will never forgive me? What if they don't want me to come back?"

"Are you kidding me? Willow is _still_ looking for you. Every single damn day that passes, she's always looking for you. They know you're not dead, Buffy, they know you just want to disappear for good, never to be found. I told you before, there is always someone watching, always someone reporting back to her about where you've been, where you are, where you end up next. Do you know why I came this time?"

Buffy shook her head no and let out a startled gasp as Faith kissed her hard. Buffy's hands were instantly grasping at clothes that Faith was wishing she hadn't put back on. They kissed desperately, hard and deep, falling back into an ever too familiar pattern. Faith pulled back from her lover's lips and cupped her face gently with both hands.

"Because it has to stop," Faith whispered. "You need to stop running, stop hiding, stop making yourself disappear. I want to be with you and I can't, not like this. I can't go another couple of months without seeing you and not knowing where you are. I worry about you, you know that? If I wasn't there last night, you would've been killed, B."

"I can't. Not yet."

"Then I can't keep waiting for you," Faith said and she swore she could feel her heart breaking as the words came out far too easily. "I love you, I do, but I can't do this anymore."

"Faith—"

"I'm gonna be in London for another day or two, three at most. I won't tell them anything. One last lie for the road, huh? You want to stay gone? I'll help you, one last time."

"On what condition?"

"That you stay gone for good this time. It's what you want, isn't it?"

Faith turned her back as tears fell from her eyes. She hated crying and she didn't want Buffy to see the pain she was feeling even though it was clearly obvious. She walked to the door and pulled on her boots, not daring to look back as she opened the door and slipped out into the narrow, dimly lit hallway.

Wiping at her eyes, she took a deep breath and headed for the stairs, ignoring the old woman who lived across the hall of the latest place that Buffy was only just briefly calling home. This had been her last ditch effort in bringing Buffy back to Cleveland with her, to put an end to her disappearing act once and for all. She couldn't handle it anymore and hearing Buffy say those three words had broke the restraint she normally had whenever she did see Buffy. But, she'd had enough. Enough of the lies, the secrets, and it finally broke her down completely even if it all had been completely worth it.

* * *

"No, I couldn't find her," Faith said as she paced in the small hotel room, glancing out the window every couple of minutes.

"What do you mean you couldn't find her? You just saw her two nights ago!"

"I know, Will, but she's just…gone. I looked everywhere for her last night," she said and she hated the bitter taste that lie left in her mouth.

"Are you—"

"Tomorrow morning, flight leaves at ten after eight in the morning. I should be back in Cleveland by tomorrow afternoon."

"Do you want me to, you know, work a little magic and bring you home sooner?"

Laughing sharply, Faith shook her head and switched her phone to her other ear. "Nah, you know how much I hate teleporting. Something tells me it's worse being teleported across an ocean than it is across the campus. Besides," Faith said and she sighed as the rain continued to pour outside, "I was thinking of doing a little sightseeing before I come home."

The truth was, she was waiting for Buffy, waiting to see if Buffy would come to her, if she would somehow, miraculously change her mind about everything. She knew it was stupid of her to hold onto that hope that maybe it'd be different this time, that maybe Buffy finally would come home with her, but she couldn't help it. She was in love with her and that was something that would never go away no matter how much time had passed since she'd seen her last.

"Call me when you land okay?"

"You know I will," Faith said easily. "I'll see you tomorrow, Will."

"If you change your mind about—"

"I'll call you. Don't hold your breath."

Faith hung up and slipped her cell phone into the back pocket of her jeans. It had been raining non-stop since shortly after she left the flat Buffy was staying in and there was no sign of it ever letting up. The dreary, gloomy day was fitting for her mood, accompanying the heavy feeling of her broken heart perfectly.

She reached for her pack of cigarettes she'd left on the windowsill and cursed under her breath when she found it completely empty. The overflowing ashtray reminded her that she'd spent the better part of the morning standing at the window, chain-smoking until she felt lightheaded and sick from smoking too much. She grabbed her room key and her wallet and stormed towards the door, muttering under her breath about having to walk down to the store in the pouring rain.

With her head hung low, she walked out of her room and headed down the short hallway to the elevators. She hit the button, jabbed it hard to be more specific, and waited. She only lifted her head when the elevator dinged and the doors slid open slowly. She stepped inside, briefly acknowledging the smart dressed man standing on the other side and she hit the lobby button, her eyes trailing back down to the floor.

She felt completely, utterly lost, a feeling she hadn't felt in a very long time. She had never felt so heartbroken before, she'd never even been in love before so it was a whole new experience feeling the way she was. How did other people do it? How did they get over the pain and the loss? How did other people move on and seemingly forget losing the one they were in love with? Her head had been filled with too many thoughts, too many memories that were all about Buffy over the last five years. She couldn't shake her from her mind no matter what she'd tried and not even the bottle of whisky she'd drank early that morning did a thing to dull the throbbing pain.

Faith felt like she was stuck on some kind of autopilot as she walked through the hotel lobby and to the front doors. She barely lifted her head and muttered a polite thank you to the doorman as he opened the door for her. The rain was cold and she pulled up the hood of her hoodie over her head and walked quickly down the busy street. She bumped into a few people, not even uttering a word as they apologized despite it not being their fault. She kept walking until she was in front of the corner store and she rushed inside, leaving a trail of rain drops on the floor as she walked over to the register and pulled her hood down.

Then she felt it, she felt it as the clerk grabbed a few packs of Lucky's for her after she asked for them. That buzz she always felt whenever Buffy was near her, the one she denied when Willow asked she ever felt in the first place because she was doing everything she could to keep Buffy's secret for her.

Nodding at the clerk as she handed him the money, she grabbed the bag from him and turned around to leave. The walk back to the hotel made it feel like she had just walked a hundred thousand miles through the rain when it was only just a block. She was soaked through, tired, cold, heartbroken, lost and alone.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, there is no one registered under that name," the woman behind the front desk said to the agitated woman in a black trench coat as Faith walked past on her way to the elevators. "There is no Faith Lehane staying at the hotel at this time."

Faith stopped and turned, looking a little more closely at the woman in the black trench coat. Her mouth went dry as she gripped on to the plastic bag a little tighter.

"You have to be mistaken. She _told_ me she was staying here."

"I'm afraid not, ma'am."

"Buffy?" Faith asked, her voice cracking as she said her name. "B?"

Buffy turned and looked at her, a smile curling over her lips as she walked away from the front desk and straight into Faith's waiting arms. Her body shook as Faith held on to her tightly and even though her clothes were soaked right through, her skin already wet, she could feel the hot tears spilling from Buffy's eyes as she buried her face into Faith's shoulder.

"Don't go," Buffy whispered into her shoulder. "Please. I don't want to lose you."

"Buffy—"

"I—I'll go back to Cleveland with you, just don't let this be over. I'm not ready for this to be over," she cried and Faith fought back her own tears as she held on to Buffy tight. "Please…"


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

She sat on the edge of the neatly made bed, her fingers picking at the buttons on the trench coat she still hadn't taken off since she followed Faith to her room. She was terrified of what would happen next, but she was tired too, tired of running and afraid if she kept trying to disappear that she'd lose Faith. That she would never get her back. That what they had would be over for good.

For five years, they shared something nobody else could ever touch. She had found a different side of herself being with Faith and the longer it went on, the more the guilt weighed heavily on her shoulders. She could keep running, she could keep finding ways to lose herself, to stop thinking about Faith and the life she left behind. She could, but deep down inside, she was ready for it all to be over, ready to go back to those who once loved her and was once a part of her family. Ready to face the people she'd deserted because she was running away from herself.

She never planned for any of this to happen. The first time Faith found her, she was in Miami. It was a month after she left them in the middle of the night and hitched a ride with a trucker that was headed to the east coast. Faith didn't ask her the questions she expected to be asked, instead they ended up at a night club not far from where Buffy had been staying. The night ended in a way she never saw coming, but should've expected it after the night they'd had dancing and drinking and kissing in the dark, secluded corner of the club. She woke up early the next morning, sore and hungover, naked and in a bed with Faith sleeping soundly next to her.

Even when she left Faith without saying goodbye or telling her where she was going, she couldn't get Faith or what happened between them out of her head. It followed her around, invaded every waking thought and took over her dreams when she allowed herself to sleep. It was what made her seek Faith out barely even a week after the first night they were together and just like that, it seemed, it became something regular—or as regular as she would allow it to be. Before she knew it, the years had passed by, but their encounters stayed brief and irregular.

After the other night, when Faith had swept in to save her from her inevitable death at the hands of ten angry vampires, she felt something she'd been afraid to feel. She didn't want Faith to leave this time, she didn't want to feel that pain of watching her walk away and not knowing when she would be with her next. It all fell apart too quickly, too easily and she spent the entire day locked in the flat, curled up in bed, crying as her heart shattered into a thousand pieces repeatedly.

This time was different. Faith had had enough of the lies, the secrets and she'd finally let it be known. It was different too because it was the first time those three little words slipped out, words she felt and knew were true, but they were words she never meant to say out loud. Saying them changed everything and that was why, for the five years she'd been doing this with Faith, she'd never once said them before.

She'd left because she was running from herself and thought if she disappeared, she'd figure out who she really was outside of "Buffy, the vampire slayer", someone who she'd been since she was fifteen years old. She'd been wrong and it'd taken her five years to realize it. It was why she'd walked seventeen blocks in the pouring rain to find Faith, and to finally fix the mess her life had become once and for all.

Buffy didn't know when she'd fallen in love with Faith. It happened over the years and it was a feeling that just settled in and made itself right at home deep in her heart. She wasn't the same person she was when she left her life behind in pursuit of a new one, one where she isolated herself from everyone that was a part of her old life, including her little sister. She'd never be able to go back to being who she was when she'd evolved into someone else, someone that was barely a shell of who she used to be. Love changed people sometimes, she knew that much was true. Falling in love with Faith had changed everything for her and there was no going back now.

She turned her attention to the room, to the empty bottle of whisky on the dresser and over to the overflowing astray on the windowsill and then over to empty whisky bottle and the plane ticket that sat next to it. No matter what happened there today between the two of them, Faith was leaving. She was going back home to Cleveland, a place Buffy had never been, a place that could've been home to her too.

That urge to get up and leave, to run out of there and never look back was as strong as it had ever been, but the thought of losing Faith for good was what kept her there. Waiting. It was what had brought her there in the first place, the thought of not wanting to lose the only good thing she'd had for the last five years, not wanting to lose the only one who loved her the way she longed and needed to be loved the most.

And now she was on the cusp of facing the hardest part of her life by returning to the ones she'd deserted in a selfish attempt in losing and finding herself. And she was doing it because she was afraid of losing what she had with Faith. Five years with her and it coincidentally became the longest relationship she'd ever had with anyone before.

Sighing, she unbuttoned the trench coat, one button at a time, ever so slowly. When she'd made the decision to come after Faith, to catch her before she left London, she knew what the consequences were that would follow. Her life would change completely—again—only this time, the events that would unfold would be ones she had no control of.

And she really hated being out of control when it came to her own life.

Faith had put so much on the line, keeping her a secret, telling lies to the people that had learned to trust her, that loved her, that considered her a part of their family in a way that Buffy used to be. Buffy never once asked her to do that, it was just something she'd done and something they both stuck with over the years. Why, was the ultimate question and one that was on the tip of Buffy's lips, right on the verge of slipping out, but even she was afraid of that answer, not sure she was ready or willing to hear just what it was that made Faith keep her secret, what made her lie to keep the others from knowing that she knew all along where Buffy was even in the times when she had no idea just where she was or when she'd see her next.

Finally, after nearly half an hour of being locked in the bathroom, Faith emerged wearing only a standard size hotel robe that was two sizes too big on her slender frame. Just like every time she saw Faith, she couldn't help but smile as she thought of how _good_ they were together, how good Faith always made her feel. She rose to her feet and approached Faith despite seeing how closed off she was trying to be.

She smiled as she wrapped her arms around Faith's neck and was greeted with a sweet, tender kiss. When she pulled back, she noticed the redness in Faith's eyes and it made the guilt she always fought not to feel, smack her hard across the face. Gently, she traced her fingers over Faith's bruised cheek, wishing she hadn't hit her. It'd been a long time since she'd laid a hand on her that wasn't a loving touch. She just smiled as Faith leaned in to her gentle touch.

Years ago, when things first started to unfold between the two of them, Buffy couldn't imagine for one moment that Faith would turn out to be the way she was, the loving and kind, caring soul who loved her despite everything. Faith was everything she used to be and there were so many times she felt like she didn't deserve her, that she wasn't worthy of being loved by someone like her. Even now, at the moment when her life was about to change yet again, she felt like she didn't deserve to have Faith on her side.

She was terrified of going to Cleveland, terrified of facing _them_ again, terrified of their reaction when they found out about her and Faith. Even though it wasn't the reason why she left, it was part of the reason why she'd stayed gone for so long. The other reason no longer fit why she was still running, still trying to make herself disappear. She wasn't the same person she was when she left and she'd never be that Buffy ever again. That Buffy Summers was dead and who she had become was something far worse than what made her run in the first place.

Neither spoke as Faith gently pushed off her trench coat, letting it fall to the ground around her feet. Their lips met in a soft, slow kiss, one that spoke volumes of what they were both thinking and feeling in that moment. Buffy allowed herself to be led towards the bed, knowing exactly where this was leading. It always went this way between them, always full of passion, of lust. It was almost as if whenever they were in the same room together, they couldn't keep their hands or their lips off of one another.

"Thought we were done for good," Faith said softly and she took one of Buffy's hands in her own and placed it on her chest. "It still hurts even though you're here now."

"I'm sorry," Buffy said and she kissed Faith's trembling lips, over and over again. "I'm not ready to not have you in my life. You were right, I've been so selfish and I—"

"You did what you felt you needed to do, B. For once in your life, you made a choice for yourself and not for anyone else. I get that, I do. Are you ready to do this, B? Are you ready to come back to Cleveland with me, make amends, start your life all over again?"

"It doesn't matter if I'm ready or not," Buffy said, shaking her head as tears filled her eyes quickly. Her hand was still pressed flat against Faith's chest and she could feel how hard, how fast her heart was racing. "All that matters to me right now is _you_, Faith."

Their lips met again in a sensual kiss with Faith leading the rest of the way to the neatly made bed. Buffy slipped the hand that was on Faith's chest through the opening of the white robe, her fingers trailing over the soft, warm flesh just above her breasts. She slid her palm up to Faith's neck, pulling her in closer, kissing her harder, deeper, looking to become lost in her completely.

Something felt different to Buffy and she pulled back from Faith's full lips and sighed softly as she gently cupped Faith's face with both hands. She searched Faith's eyes, noticing how much lighter they were than she remembered them being and she tried to figure out, to understand why it suddenly felt so different between them. A good different. One that had her heart skipping a beat as a sly grin curled over Faith's lips.

"You finally feel it, don't you?" Faith whispered and she leaned in to kiss over Buffy's lips lightly. "You were always so close, yet never close enough to feeling everything I always felt whenever I am with you."

"It feels…"

"Like it'll take your breath away," Faith finished for her and Buffy laughed softly, nodding her head as Faith's hands roamed over her back idly.

Buffy closed her eyes and smiled. It felt like that and more. She didn't know why she'd never felt that before with Faith or why it'd taken her so long just to completely let her in. She knew it had a lot to do with her decision to stop trying to make herself disappear. Even before her life would change again, it was already beginning to change and it was starting with the relationship that she had with Faith.

They could really have something together, something more than what they've had for the past five years. It felt brand new all over again, it felt exciting and it made her feel a little nervous too. Nervous because she wasn't sure how it would change things between them, but she had a lingering feeling that after they got over a few speed bumps along the way, things would be better than they ever had been before. And it was almost scary because they were both entering a whole new unknown between them.

"Hey," Faith said softly as she waited for Buffy to open her eyes. "Where'd you go just now?"

"Nowhere," she replied. "I'm right here."

"Are you?"

"I was thinking about…us. Everything is going to change, you know that, right?"

"I do," Faith nodded slowly, unmoving, her hands coming to a standstill on Buffy's lower back. "It's going to be different now, B. Are you okay with that?"

"Super okay with that."

Faith laughed and hugged her tight. "Good. Happy to hear we're on the same page here."

"I just—what happens when we get to Cleveland, Faith?"

"I'll take you to my place, get you settled in and then I'm gonna go talk to Willow before I talk to the others. You, on the other hand, are gonna wait 'til I clear the shitstorm that's gonna explode as soon as I tell them I've been seeing you secretly for the last five years."

"Are you scared?"

"I'm fucking terrified, B."

"Then let's not go back, not yet. Come with me, run away with me for a little while—"

"I thought you were done running away?" Faith asked and she sighed heavily. "I used to run cos I didn't want to face what was waiting for me, but that ain't who I am anymore and I know you don't want that to be who you are anymore either. We can't run, B."

"We can," Buffy insisted and even though she felt that sinking feeling in her heart, she wasn't completely ready to go to Cleveland. Not yet. Not tomorrow or the next day, maybe not even next week or the one after that. "Faith, it's not going to be forever. Just for a little while."

"How long is a little while? A year? Five years? I got a life in Cleveland and I wanna get back to it, you know?"

"I know."

Faith sighed at the dejected look on Buffy's face. "How about I give you a week, B? We'll go somewhere where nobody knows I'm there and we can do the whole disappearing thing together. One week. Okay?"

"Okay," Buffy smiled, relief settling in as Faith kissed her to seal the deal. But the relief was short lived since she knew, once that week was over, she'd be going to Cleveland with Faith.

"No backing out after a week, okay?" Faith said softly and Buffy nodded slowly. "You try, and I'm gone. I mean it. I want you in my life, but not like this. Not anymore. You get me, Buffy? I'm serious about this. One week is all you're getting out of me."

"I know. I just—I'm not entirely ready to face them yet."

"Scared?"

"Terrified."

"Makes two of us," Faith chuckled softly. "Come on, how about I get dressed and I'll take you out for dinner."

"A date?"

"Never been on one," Faith shrugged. "Any time we've seen each other it's always been cooped up in some hotel room or wherever you've been staying at the time. Let's change it up, do it the uh, right way, yeah?"

"What about what you told me the other day? There are people looking for me and probably watching you and—"

"Told Willow you weren't here anymore, B. She's probably called off the squad here in London already. We ain't got nothing to worry about," Faith replied and she smiled widely. "You know, you never let me say your name for years. Feels good to say it again. You don't know how hard it was, especially whenever I was about to cum, how much I wanted to scream your name and never could cos you asked me not to."

"You know, I never took you for a submissive type," Buffy teased as she pulled Faith towards the bed. "You turned out to be everything I thought you weren't. It's why I kept coming back to you. It's why I came here today before you left. Somewhere along the way, Faith, I fell in love with you and I'll do whatever it takes not to lose you. I don't want to know what my life would be like if you weren't in it. I realized something last night. I realized that there's nothing that I want in this world more than you."

"You turned out to be everything I thought you weren't too, B. For one thing, we've been doing this for five years. Five years. Nothing in my life has ever lasted this long, you know? Never thought that I'd ever get the chance to know what it's like to kiss you."

"Then aren't you lucky I kissed you first?"

"Was a hell of a kiss, that's for sure," Faith grinned. "All the rest have been pretty wild too."

"So," Buffy purred as her hands slipped down to the tightly knotted belt that held the robe closed. She gave it a few tugs before the knot slipped free. "How about we get a late dinner, you know, much later, and spend some time, you know…"

"I think I like the way you think."

"I think you love it…"

* * *

_Two days later…_

Willow frowned as she read the text message for the third time, not believing what she was seeing. Faith never showed up at the airport, no phone call, nothing. And then the text came in from a number she didn't recognize, one from Faith telling her she wasn't coming back for a week and that she'd explain everything. She also mentioned not to come looking for her and that she was no longer in London and if she did try to find her, she'd stay gone for a lot longer than a week.

"What is going on?" Dawn asked as she knocked on Willow's open office door. "Did you hear from Faith yet?"

"Kind of," Willow replied and she handed the phone to Dawn. "I don't know why she would do this or why she wouldn't tell me where she is. This isn't like her. She—"

"She found Buffy," Dawn said simply as she handed the phone back to her. Willow blinked and shook her head no. "Come on, Will, you said so yourself, this isn't like her."

"She said that Buffy—"

"Was gone? That she couldn't find her? Come on, even I know that Faith is a shitty liar and she's been doing one hell of a job of convincing us otherwise."

"What do you mean, Dawnie?"

"Oh come on!" Dawn exclaimed and she rolled her eyes. "Okay, so it hasn't been completely obvious. But I did get this," she said and she handed Willow her phone and it was open to her email, a very specific email. "It's from Buffy."

Willow's hands were shaking as she looked down at the screen, her eyes suddenly becoming blurry with tears. "Are—are you sure it's from her?"

"I'm positive."

"Can you—can you read it for me?" Willow asked as she handed the phone back to Dawn, blinking away her tears as her mind raced with thoughts she couldn't sort through. With Faith not coming back when she said she was and the text she'd sent that was kind of cryptic in a sense, it was becoming too much for her to handle. "Please?"

Dawn sighed with a shake of her head and she walked over to sit on one of the chairs in front of Willow's desk. "Fine," she said exasperatedly and rolled her eyes before looking down at her phone. "Dawn, I know it's been a long time since we've talked to each other and there are a lot of things I want to explain, I just don't know where to start. So, I'll start with the first thing I know you'd ask me, you know, before you completed flipped out in the way that I know you'd do. I left because I was afraid, afraid of myself and the future, afraid I couldn't lead and afraid of who I'd become if I stayed. I was wrong. I know that now. I should never have left, but that was my choice, my mistake."

Dawn cleared her throat as Willow began to pace the floor near the desk. Five years and not once did Buffy contact them. Five years and they never knew why she'd left, only ever speculated reasons why what exactly made her run away the way she had.

"I wish I could tell you this in person, but there's something else that you need to know," Dawn continued and she flicked her eyes over to Willow's and raised an eyebrow. "A month after I left, Faith found me in Miami. I don't want to and can't get into the details, because for one thing, you're my sister and there's only so much I ever want you to know. Something happened that night between us and I can't even begin to explain it. Sometimes, things happen in life that you don't understand and that you don't see coming. You know this as well as I do that life can be so unexpected and surprising that it can catch you completely off guard when you least expect it."

Willow stopped pacing. She knew. She knew without knowing anything more. Faith had been seeing Buffy for the last five years and never said a word about it to anyone and she lied to her the other day when she said that Buffy was gone. A part of her felt so betrayed. Faith had become a close friend of hers, someone she could always confide in, someone she count on to be open and honest, and it turned out that that wasn't entirely true. She didn't know how to feel, what to think and she looked over at Dawn pointedly, waiting for her to continue.

"Somewhere along the way, I fell in love with her," Dawn said, her voice quiet. Strained. "I know what you're thinking, that maybe I've completely lost my mind because it's Faith, but over the years, I've seen an entirely different side of her and please don't blame her for the lies she told, the secrets she kept, because it was me who made her promise me she'd never say a word about me to any of you. I wanted to stay gone and the reasons changed over the years. I was no longer running from myself, from my life, but from all of you. I don't expect you to understand or to forgive me for disappearing for so long, but I'm tired of running, tired of hiding, yet I'm so afraid of coming to Cleveland and having to face all of you, especially you.

"She doesn't know I'm reaching out to you right now and it's taken a lot for me to send this to you. For years, I've had a letter written to you, saying the things I'm telling you now, but everything is changing again. I'm tired. I'm so very tired, Dawn. I ran because I was afraid of who I was becoming, and somewhere along the way I became what I was running from in the first place. I want to go home, but I don't know where home is anymore. Sunnydale is long gone and I still want to go back even knowing that I can't. I miss you, all of you, and I hope that someday you'll be able to forgive me for leaving, for not once calling just to let you know I was okay, for making you and hoping that you believed I was dead so you'd stop looking for me. I just want it to be over, I want to find a place to call home and I want it to be with Faith. With all of you. I know you can never understand why I feel this way, but things change, people change, and the person I am when I am with her is someone I've been searching for my whole life. We'll be home soon, Dawnie. I love you. Buffy."

Dawn sighed and slipped her phone into the front pocket of her jeans as she stood up from the chair. Willow was completely speechless. Buffy was in love with Faith? Faith knew all along where Buffy was, metaphorically speaking and she never once even hinted at it? Willow looked over at the cub of tea sitting idly on her desk, temporarily forgotten and likely cold. She needed something stronger now after hearing Dawn read Buffy's email to her. Something with a kick.

"So, I've been trying to wrap my head around the whole "Buffy is sleeping with Faith" thing all day and it wigs me out. Big time. Did you see that coming or does it completely blindside you too?" Dawn asked and Willow shook her head, a few tears falling despite trying so hard to hold them back.

"I can't believe we never…" Willow trailed off, her voice getting caught in her throat. "I just—wow, I don't even know what to say."

"Um, guys?" Kennedy said as she walked in, stopping short just inside the open doorway. "We have a problem. A big problem."

"What is it?" Willow asked as she looked over at Kennedy, her mind still reeling from hearing all that she just did. "Kenny, what is it?"

"London squad has just been eradicated. Reports are coming in confirmed that they're all dead," Kennedy replied, her voice hitching as she clutched on to the door frame. "We've already sent the Dublin squad in to retrieve the bodies."

"Who killed them?" Dawn asked, the focus suddenly shifted yet not forgotten.

"An old one," Kennedy replied, a frown settling on her usually stoic face. "He goes by the name of Tarek Yareli. Even after he is staked, he comes back. Can't ever be killed. Old magicks are working in his favor. Kind of like Dracula, only worse. Much worse."

Willow gasped, the name sounding too familiar. She rushed to one of the many bookshelves in her office and pulled an old, leather-bound book from one of the shelves and quickly flicked through it, finding exactly what she was looking for in a matter of minutes.

"Who is this guy and why did he—"

"Buffy staked him in London," Kennedy replied, her eyes flicking back and forth between Dawn and Willow. "And now he—"

"He's out for revenge," Willow finished for her, closing the book quickly. "Oh Goddess…"

Things were about to take a turn from bad to worse.


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER THREE**

There were whispers floating around Headquarters, whispers that went silent when Willow walked past. Back and forth, from her office to the research room down the hallway, it was a never ending trek, trying to find answers, information on their newest big bad, trying to find a way to put him down for good, and always coming up empty.

Only her and Dawn knew about Buffy and Faith and it would stay that way for as long as they could manage to keep it from the others. Willow was sure that when Buffy sent that email to Dawn, she intended only for Dawn to read it, not someone else. Not even her.

"Honey, you need to slow down," Kennedy said as Willow made what felt like her millionth trip down the hallway to the research room. "You've been doing this since yesterday. You haven't slept. Come on," Kennedy urged, trying to pull her into her arms. "You need to rest, Will."

"I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

"I just—we need to find something and soon. I got a call from the squad in Dublin. They've were attacked overnight. Thank Goddess most of them had gone to London to retrieve the bodies of the girls there or we would've lost another squad completely."

"How many?"

"Ten," Willow said tightly, the lump in her throat hard to swallow as she thought of the girls who lives had been taken from them. "He left a message, written in the blood from some of the girls he slaughtered."

"Oh shit," Kennedy groaned and she pulled Willow in for a tight, brief hug. "What did this message say, Will?"

"Paris is next."

"We got to—"

"I called already. Irina said she'll relocate the girls as soon as possible and discreetly as possible. Hopefully he—he doesn't find them. Irina is going to cast a protection spell, a barrier of sorts, to hide them, but Tarek is very powerful. He's not just any old vampire. We have no idea what we're dealing with when it comes to him and that, Kennedy, is why I can't stop."

"I didn't say stop, I said slow down," Kennedy replied and she let Willow back out of her arms hesitantly. "Let Giles and the rest of the research team work and get some rest, honey."

"I can't," Willow frowned. "Kennedy, I don't think you realize how big this is right now. We have to stop Tarek before he kills more slayers. He's not just after Buffy, he's after all of us."

"You don't know that."

"No, I don't, but if he's eradicated the London squad, went after Dublin and now Paris? Where is he going to end up next when he turns up to take out the Paris squad and they've made themselves essentially disappear?"

"Will—"

"Just don't," Willow snapped as she backed away from Kennedy. "Stop worrying about me and let me do my job and you do yours. Don't you have a class to teach right about now?"

"Yeah, Faith's defense class. Where the hell is she, anyway?" Kennedy asked, hands on her hips as she watched Willow walk away. "Will? Where is she? Are you going to ignore me like you did when I asked you that yesterday? Willow!"

Willow closed her eyes for a moment and inhaled deeply, ignoring Kennedy as she continued down the hallway the the research room. Things had been strained between her and Kennedy and now that they were facing a new and different kind of big bad and with Faith gone off with Buffy who even knew where, it was just adding to the tension between the two of them.

Willow sighed and ran her fingers through her short hair before walking into the bustling research room. At the main table that sat in the middle of the large room, Giles was elbow deep in books, some old, others older than most. She took her seat next to him and he barely looked up from the text he was translating. From the strong odor of alcohol coming off of Giles, she knew there was more than just tea in his cup.

It'd been a long night and even longer morning, but there was nobody in that room willing to give up until they found answers, a solution to their newest threat.

* * *

The hot sun warmed her skin as she lay on the white, sandy beach. It was quiet aside from the gentle waves that crashed against the shore and the soft breeze that ruffled through the palm tree leaves. Beside her, Buffy lay on the lounger, her eyes closed as she enjoyed the warmth of the sun and the emptiness of the beach.

After they left London, they stopped in Brazil to meet with the shaman that had originally cast the spell that kept Willow from being able to track Buffy down with magic. After spending half a day in Brazil, they flew to a small, private island off the coast of Puerto Rico. Buffy explained on the plane ride over the ocean, how she met a very wealthy man years before and saved him from a clan of demon's that were out for his soul. In return, he told her she could have use of his private island whenever she felt the need and now that they'd been there for a couple of days, Faith had no idea why Buffy hadn't just stayed there for the last five years.

Faith sighed as she reached for the sunscreen lying in the sand next to her. She applied it generously, not really wanting to risk getting burnt and ruin the week they had there together. She couldn't remember the last time she had a vacation, and in fact, she never really had one in her life before, not even after Sunnydale. Always working, training, slaying. Eat, sleep, repeat.

She looked over at Buffy as a smile curled over her lips. She looked breathtaking just laying there, soaking up the sun. Her little white bikini contrasted against her bronzed, glistening skin, making her look like a goddess or something close to it. They hadn't been together since they'd been in London, but it didn't bother her. She didn't want their relationship to be just about sex—no matter how great it was—and they were starting something new together and this was the first time since they'd started fucking that they'd been together for more than a day at a time.

And it was nice. Everything about just being with Buffy, near her, made her feel that warm tingle deep inside. It felt different than it did when they had sex, it almost felt better.

As she stared at Buffy, she watched as her breasts rose and fell with every slow, steady breath she took. It stirred something inside of her and her body flushed with arousal as it rolled through her completely. She needed to have Buffy. She needed to touch her, to kiss her, to taste her, to feel the way her body shook and shuddered against her own as she came hard. Faith rolled off her lounger and moved to straddle Buffy's hips, startling her awake from her impromptu nap in the sun.

"Hey," Buffy grinned as she ran her hands over Faith's thighs. Her smile quickly turned into a pout as she stared up at Faith. "I was having such a nice dream."

"Were you?" Faith chuckled as she leaned down to kiss her lightly on her pouted lips. "Was I in it?"

"I don't know, maybe."

"Was I doing naughty things to you?"

"Maybe."

"Something like this?" Faith asked huskily as she traced hardening nipples through the thin bikini top. Buffy nodded, arching up into Faith's hands as she bit her lower lip. Faith moved her fingers around to the back of Buffy's neck and untied the string, letting it fall as she smoothed her hands down the front of her chest. "What about this?"

Dipping her head down, she sucked on Buffy's left nipple, eliciting a moan that sent shivers down her spine. She never could get enough of Buffy and every time she was with her, it was like the first time all over again. She knew every inch of Buffy's body, every scar that marred her flesh, every spot that made Buffy ticklish, shudder and sigh contently. She knew how to make her cum in less than a minute and how to draw it out until she came several times in a row. She knew what each kiss meant, which ones were just because and which ones told her that Buffy wanted more of her, all of her.

Buffy leaned up enough for Faith to remove the bikini top completely and she dropped it listlessly down on the sand and moved her lips across the top of Buffy's small yet pert breasts, lavishing her right nipple with the right amount of attention.

"Hmm," Buffy sighed happily as she threaded her fingers through Faith's hair. "So much better than dreaming about it."

"So, you _were_ dreaming about me doing naughty things to you, B?" Faith grinned against her soft, wet, slightly damp skin just below her breasts. She moved down to the edge of the lounger and pulled Buffy down closer to her as she knelt in the soft sand. "Tell me what else I was doing to you, babe."

"Babe?" Buffy raised an eyebrow as she leaned up on her elbows and looked down at Faith. "That's new."

"You like it?"

"I do," Buffy replied, a salacious smile spreading across her lips. Faith tapped on her knees, wanting to hear her answer. "Well, you stripped me naked," she said slowly as Faith ran her hands up her smooth thighs and hooked her thumbs under the waistband of the tiny bikini bottoms and gave a little tug. "And you teased me until I had to beg you to make me cum."

"I like the sound of that."

"You know I'm not good at this," Buffy whispered and Faith shook her head. "Talking like this. I'm more of a…doer than a talker."

Faith chuckled as she slowly slid down the bikini bottoms and they joined the top on the sand beside the lounger. Neither said another word as Faith spread Buffy's legs, her eyes drinking in the sigh before her as Buffy ran her hands over her breasts and down her stomach, her breath hitching in her chest as Faith leaned in and kissed her way slowly up her inner thighs, alternating between one and then the other. Teasing her.

Faith ignored the awkward pain of the plastic lounger pressing hard into her ribs as she neared Buffy's center. She took one long lick, tasting her, teasing her, and she loved the way she tasted after lying out in the sun all afternoon long. It was different, muskier, and she could faintly taste the salt water on her skin from when they'd gone for a quick dip a few hours before in the warm Caribbean sea.

Draping Buffy's legs over her shoulders, Faith licked her fully again, moaning into the soft, wet flesh as she buried her face into her, slipping an eager tongue inside of her as she did. She wasn't in the mood for teasing her too much. She wanted her and needed her.

The last two days with Buffy had been great, but even when she tried to convince herself they didn't need to be having sex when they were together, she knew that wasn't true. They completed each other, sexually and otherwise. Buffy was her everything and she had no idea why it'd taken her so long to really figure that out.

Two days together and she was already calling her babe, already thinking of all the nights and days ahead of them, there on the small private island and back in Cleveland and every bit of it excited her beyond belief.

Buffy pulled at her hair, pulling her out of thoughts she shouldn't be diving so deep into when she had Buffy naked and waiting for her to bring her tumbling over the edge. She grinned and nipped at the inside of Buffy's thigh playfully before diving right back in. Buffy's hips shot up as she wrapped her lips around her clit, sucking hard and lavishing it with her tongue, flicking it until she had to hold Buffy's hips down to keep from bucking against her too hard.

Buffy pulled at her hair again, but she didn't stop, she couldn't. She was drunk on the intoxicating taste of Buffy and she slid her tongue in deep inside of her, drinking her all in. The next rough tug on her hair made her jolt backwards and she looked up at Buffy questionably.

"We have this great big, comfortable bed inside," Buffy said as she beckoned Faith to her and she complied, crawling up her body, the lounger nearly tipping before she could reach Buffy's lips and kiss her. "I think it's time to break it in, don't you think so, Faith?"

"Fuck…" Faith sighed as Buffy reached down to grab her ass roughly, her short nails digging into her exposed skin. She _loved_ the way Buffy said her name, the way it just rolled off her lips. It sounded completely and utterly sexy. It just turned her on even more and she knew that Buffy knew exactly what it did to her too.

"Come on," Buffy urged as they both got up from the lounger. Buffy took Faith's hand in hers, intertwining their fingers as she backed up away from Faith, pulling her with her towards the small house just twenty feet off the beach.

Faith couldn't take her eyes off of Buffy as she turned and walked ahead of her, their hands still joined together, grasping tightly. The sight of her bare ass, so tight and perfect, made it so hard for her to keep her hands to herself. There wasn't a lot they hadn't done together over the years, but fucking her from behind with a strap-on was still on Faith's bucket list. It made her gush just thinking about how hot it'd be to fuck her like that. Strap-on's were still virgin in their relationship, but Faith wasn't opposed to using them even though Buffy was.

Unable to resist, she smoothed a palm over Buffy's bare ass just as they reached the open door of the house and ran her middle finger down her crack, causing Buffy to squeal a little at the sudden and unexpected touch.

"Faith!"

"Hmm?" Faith murmured as she let go of her hand and wrapped her arms around her waist.

Buffy turned in her arms and jumped up onto Faith who caught her easily. Both smiling the smiles of lovesick fools, Faith carried her inside the house and to the bedroom just a short distance away. As she entered the bedroom, Buffy unwrapped her legs from around her waist and slid down her body, their lips meeting in a frenzied kiss as Buffy's hands worked at getting Faith's matching white bikini off.

It was always like this when they were together, but ever since London, things had been different and they were still changing, evolving, becoming so much more. The last five years had given them sporadic bursts of time together, learning what the other wanted and needed, but the last couple of days had been a game changer and Faith was completely lost within the core of it all.

It was exciting. It was new. And it made Faith long for what would come next.

And she suspected it would be her as she was thrown down to the bed roughly by Buffy, who growled as she did just that. Their lips met in another frenzied kiss as they fought for control, fought to be on top, rolling around on the soft, plush king sized bed. In the end, she let Buffy win and the sexy laugh that followed as her hands were pinned above her head hard against the mattress made her whole body respond with flooding pleasure.

"I love you," Faith whispered against Buffy's lingering lips. "I should've told you—"

"Shh," Buffy whispered as a finger was placed over her lips. "I know. I love you too."

All she could do was stare into Buffy's hazel eyes, the green in them more intense than she'd ever seen before. When Buffy smiled at her, the smile reached her eyes and Faith slipped a hand around to the back of her neck, smiling too as she pulled her down for a kiss. She ran her other hand down Buffy's back, pulling Buffy flush against her. The kiss was soft and slow, their breaths mingling as they just reveled in each other. Faith shifted under Buffy and she slipped a leg between hers, her hand that rest on the small of Buffy's back urged her to move against her. It felt like hours passed as they kissed slowly, their bodies moving against one another's in a slow rhythm neither were used to or had ever done before.

Faith's head was spinning as she realized what this was leading up to. It wasn't just sex, it wasn't just fucking. They were going to make love for the very first time and that in itself was new between them, and so very new and unexplored territory for Faith.

When Buffy had said she loved her back in London, it had been the first time those words had ever been spoken between them. As much as it had thrown her off-guard and sent things spiraling in the opposite direction, she wanted to say the words back despite the internal struggle she was going through. But now, things were different and she said it because she meant it, said it because she wanted to, because that's what she was feeling, that big burst of love not just in her heart, but her soul as well.

Pulling herself out of her thoughts and back to Buffy, Faith kissed her deeper, moaning into her mouth as Buffy thrust her thigh against her harder. Faith gasped out into the quiet of the room as Buffy pulled away from her lips and kicked her way down her jaw and to her neck. She closed her eyes when Buffy placed her mouth over the scar Angelus had given her and sucked, hard, teeth sinking into the skin but not breaking through.

Her hands went to Buffy's head, fingers gripping soft blonde hair and she gently brought Buffy back up to her lips, kissing her breathlessly as their hips rocked and slipped against smooth, muscular thighs. Buffy laughed, not breaking the kiss as Faith rolled them over and shifted their legs until their cunts were pressed flush together. With one hand on the mattress to hold herself up from Buffy a little, she started to thrust against her, their lips breaking apart from the kiss as breathy gasps slipped out.

As their hands joined together, their lips found one another's in a passionate kiss. Buffy squeezed Faith's hand, using the other to scrape her short nails roughly down Faith's back. It was all feeling a little too much for Faith and she couldn't believe how close she was or how quickly she'd gotten there.

Buffy breathed out heavily and she rolled her hips harder, creating even more delicious friction between them. Faith cried out as Buffy's nails dug into her skin just below her shoulder blade. She squeezed Buffy's hand harder and she stared down into her eyes.

With one last thrust against her, Faith let go and one intense orgasm ripped through her body as she shuddered and shook against Buffy, clutching on to her as she felt Buffy cum with her. Rolling off of Buffy, she draped her leg over Buffy's and ran her fingers lightly over her stomach, their eyes still locked in a sensual, loving gaze. She dipped her head down and licked over a hard nipple before moving her lips to capture Buffy's in a lazy, slow, passionate kiss.

Buffy sucked Faith's bottom lip between hers as she ran a hand down Faith's side, a slow descent, fingers teasing, skipping over flushed, sweaty skin, stopping as she dipped her fingers down between her legs. Faith's hand mirrored Buffy's and they moaned into each other's mouths as fingers slipped with ease into wetness. Her heart was racing as her body filled with red hot pleasure and she slipped two fingers inside of Buffy, eliciting a moan as their lips broke apart. Buffy's fingers, although thin, filled her as she thrust three of them inside of her. They moved slowly, each finding their own rhythm as they brought each other closer and closer to the edge.

Faith ignored the sudden prickling feeling at the back of her neck, the one that told her something was wrong, that something bad, possibly big was about to happen. She focused just on Buffy, only her, because there in that moment, the only thing that existed in her world was Buffy. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else could touch her or what she and Buffy had. Not even her life and her friends back in Cleveland mattered at the moment.

* * *

Willow groggily lifted her head off the purple silk pillow and glanced at the clock. She'd finally succumbed to the exhaustion, choosing to get some sleep on the small couch in her office rather than back at her apartment with Kennedy. It had been four days since she last heard from Faith and she was growing increasingly worried about her.

They hadn't been able to find much on Tarek Yareli and after she collapsed in the research room after two straight days of doing nothing but trying to find answers, Giles ordered her to get some proper rest, to clear her mind and let her body recuperate before she even thought of returning back to research.

She sat up on the couch slowly, her whole body aching, but the tiredness wasn't weighing as heavily over her head like it had been ten whole hours before. Squinting into the darkness of her office, she saw a package sitting on her desk that hadn't been there before.

"Aperio," she gestured and the heavy drapes that covered the window opened and the sunlight flooded in. Blinking at the sudden brightness, she walked over to where the package sat on her desk and picked it up. "It's addressed to Faith. What is it doing in here?"

"Because her office is locked," Kennedy said quietly from where she sat in the far corner. "I signed for it when the courier dropped it off earlier and thought maybe you'd want to take a look at what's inside."

"Kennedy, what are you—I didn't know you—" Flustered, she shook her head and placed the package back down on her desk. "It's not mine. I am not going to open it."

"Aren't you curious?"

Willow was and she stared down at the small package, the stamp on it indicating it'd come from London. There was no return address on it and she instantly recognized the writing as Faith's. Now that piqued her curiosity even more and she glanced over at Kennedy briefly before she tore open the parcel paper and opened up the small box.

"Her phone," Willow laughed coldly as she pulled Faith's cellphone out of the box. "She sent her phone back here."

"Why?"

"So that we can't find her," Willow sighed. "I tried looking for her," she admitted quietly. "I know she asked me not to, but I tried anyway."

"And?"

"Nothing. Just like Buffy. Whatever spell Buffy's been using to make herself disappear, Faith is using it now too."

"What?" Kennedy almost yelled as she rose from the chair and stormed angrily over to where Willow stood. "What the hell are you talking about, Will?"

Willow's eyes went wide. She wasn't supposed to say anything, not even to Kennedy. She didn't want anyone else to know that Faith was with Buffy, hiding away somewhere with her for whatever reason.

"Faith knows where Buffy is? Why didn't you tell me, Willow? Why?" Kennedy demanded and she laughed bitterly as she slammed a hand down on the desk. "What else do you know that you haven't told me?"

"Kenny—"

"I have every right to know!" Kennedy exclaimed. "Faith is my friend too and I've been worried about her when she didn't come back from London. Where is she? Is she with Buffy?"

"Yes," Willow whispered, her hands shaking as she gripped onto Faith's cell phone.

"Who else knows about this?"

"Dawn."

"Why would Faith take off with Buffy anyway? I thought she was going to look for her, bring her back home. Wasn't that the whole reason she went to London in the first place?"

"They're—" Willow shook her head. She still couldn't believe it.

"They're what, Will?" Kennedy asked, her voice softer as she reached out for her hand. "What?"

"Together."

"You said that already, we've established that much and—"

"No, Kenny, they—they're _together_," she enunciated on the word, not wanting to call it anything else, not sure what exactly it was that Buffy and Faith had together, just knowing that Buffy told Dawn that she was in love with Faith.

Kennedy stepped back and shook her head before she burst out laughing. "You're joking, right? Faith and Buffy are together? In what sense? Like, they're fucking?"

"Buffy's in love with her," she whispered and that only made Kennedy laugh even harder. "She sent Dawn an email the other day, trying to explain a lot of things. Faith was one of the things she tried to very vaguely explain. She didn't say it directly, but she indicated that she and Faith were somewhere together and that they'd be home soon."

"And how long has this been going on? How long has Faith been lying to all of us?" Kennedy asked, her voice bitter and angry. "The whole time that Buffy has been gone?" Willow didn't say a word and it just made Kennedy angrier. "Are you kidding me? I'm going to kill her!"

"Kennedy, we have bigger things to worry about right now."

"I know," Kennedy sighed defeatedly. "You should've told me about Faith. You should've told me that you knew that she was with Buffy. I've been worrying about her, Willow!"

"We're all worried about her," Willow replied. "She doesn't know about Tarek, she doesn't know that he's after slayers or that he could very likely be looking for Buffy or both of them right now. I just want to find her, warn her of what's happening right now. She's—"

"Being goddamn selfish," Kennedy snapped. "She dropped everything in her life for Buffy. What the hell makes her so special, huh?"

"It—it's Buffy," Willow muttered. "You wouldn't understand. You don't know her like we do."

"And thank god for that!"

Willow slapped Kennedy hard across the face, her own anger flooding through her veins as she breathed heavily, struggling to remain calm and failing. "Get out of my office," Willow said through gritted teeth. "Go, Kennedy. Please."

Willow couldn't even look at Kennedy as she quickly left her office and she let the tears fall as the door slammed shut hard enough to rattle the frame. She tried not to let what happened between her and Kennedy to throw her completely off course. They did have bigger things to worry about, Tarek Yareli being the main source of their problems and the entire lack of information they had on him wasn't helping them get any closer to solving the problem.

She pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a heavy headache coming on. The soft buzzing of Faith's phone, however, pulled her attention away from the thoughts that flooded her mind relentlessly. She picked the phone up and after a few tries of getting Faith's password right, she finally unlocked it. There was one new text message from a blocked number. She opened it and there was nothing written, just a picture.

A picture of a very cosy looking Faith and Buffy on a beach somewhere, kissing as they stood on the beach by the water, looking the perfect picture of a couple very much in love. Willow's stomach twisted, not because of the picture, but because of the text that came through just a few seconds later.

"You wish you knew where they are, don't you, witch? As you can see, I do. They're next. TY."

With a gasp, she dropped the phone and it bounced on the soft white rug on the floor. Willow backed away slowly, hands shaking as she stared blankly down at the black screen.

Tarek Yareli had found them and they had no idea what kind of danger they were in.

Everything had already gone from bad to worse. They were far beyond that now. Buffy and Faith were in trouble and there was absolutely no way to warn them, to save them…


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER FOUR**

Happy. That's what she felt and it was a feeling she'd almost forgotten what it felt like. She watched the sun as it set over the water and she turned to Faith, smiling as strong arms easily found their way around her. Happy and in love, that was what she felt and it made her feel so free and so alive.

But still, something felt off. Something felt wrong and she couldn't quite put her finger on just what it was. It made the hair on the back of her neck prickle, a similar feeling to the pang in her gut whenever there were vampires or demons nearby. And strangely enough, she felt that too, but it was far too faint to raise alarm. Too faint to need to ask Faith if she felt it too.

She looked out over the calm water, watching the sun as it set, the brilliant hues of red filling the sky, bouncing off the turquoise blue water. It was almost mesmerizing. It almost didn't feel real and the scene before her looked like something out of a dream. She looked over at a big white yacht that was anchored about half a mile away.

"How long has that boat been out there?" She asked as she turned to look at Faith.

"What boat, B?"

"That one," Buffy replied as she subtly pointed to where she was looking.

Faith shrugged and leaned in to kiss Buffy lightly on the lips. "Don't know. It's just a boat."

"But why is it there?"

"Who cares? Probably just passing by or something and decided to anchor for the night. We're in the Caribbean sea, there's gonna be lots of boats and shit, private island or not."

Buffy sighed, trying to leave the issue alone, but it didn't feel right at all. But her thoughts were quickly dissolved with the feel of Faith's hands sliding under the white sundress she'd picked up at a shop near the airport. Faith's fingers trailed over the edge of the panties she'd hastily put on after the long afternoon they'd had breaking in the bed. Just thinking about how passionate and erotic it had been turned her on beyond belief. It had never been like that between them before, but she definitely wasn't complaining. It was new and different and it really showed her how much Faith truly did love her.

As if she ever really questioned that, yet she still wondered how, after all those years, all those sporadic bursts of days where they'd be together, and the weeks and months where they weren't, could Faith fall in love with her too? Faith always said she never did love, never did commitment or relationships, but isn't that what they'd been sharing for the last five years, even if it wasn't in the traditional sense?

When she was with Faith, she felt more like herself, not her old self or who she'd become, but the one she'd been searching for for a long, long time. They'd gone from being lovers to something more in just a matter of days and even though they were thousands of miles from the place that Faith called home, she loved how different things were becoming between them and she couldn't wait to see what came next.

Was Faith thinking those same thoughts? Was she thinking not just about what would happen in the days that would come, but down the road? She'd learned very quickly that Faith, despite the bravado, the façade, the tough personality she hid behind, that she was very much a romantic at heart and longed for love, just like everyone else did. Faith wasn't a selfish lover either and she loved that about her. She loved a lot of things about her and even there, on an island in paradise, she was finding lots of other things that she loved about Faith.

Including her insatiable libido and the fact that Faith just couldn't keep her hands to herself. She definitely wasn't complaining, she loved being with Faith, and if she thought back to before things had unfolded between them, she knew she'd never once thought about being with another woman or Faith in particular. She'd never even played with that thought, but when it happened the first time, she hadn't been afraid of the unknown, she embraced it.

It made her _feel_ again, it made her feel alive. Truly alive.

Buffy leaned in and captured Faith's lips with her own in a passionate kiss. Her bare feet sunk in the soft sand as she held on to Faith tight. Faith's hands smoothed over her skin, fingers tugging at her panties, slipping just under the edge of them before lifting Buffy up off her feet. Buffy broke away from Faith's lips and wrapped her legs around her hips, smiling down at her as Faith carried her to the house.

"Think I've enjoyed the sunset long enough," Faith whispered huskily.

"Mmm," Buffy moaned as Faith's lips found their way to her neck, licking and sucking, gently nibbling at the skin just below her ear. "You are completely insatiable, Faith."

Faith laughed against her skin as she stepped inside the open doorway. The soft, gentle breeze blew the white, almost sheer drapes around them as Buffy slid down Faith's body before placing her feet firmly on the floor.

"Never spent more than a day with you, B," Faith said as she traced her fingers over Buffy's shoulders. "Always wondered what it'd be like, just you and me, nobody else around for miles."

"Almost makes you wish you'd never have to leave such a place."

"Almost," Faith sighed. "We're going back, Buffy."

"I know—I didn't mean it like that," Buffy said quickly as the words Faith said back in London echoed through her mind. Words that sounded more of a threat, that she'd lose Faith if she tried to get her to stay for longer than a week. "If you ever feel like you need to get away from things every once in a while, we can always come back down here, just you and me."

"I'd like that, but we'll see, B. You know that being a slayer, life just doesn't stop," Faith replied and she frowned as she stepped around Buffy and headed for the small kitchen. "But it's been, I dunno, nice to kind of get away from it all for a little while."

Buffy watched her as she pulled out a bottle of wine from the fridge and searched through the drawers for the corkscrew. She grunted in frustration and gripped on to the edge of the counter and hung her head low. Buffy walked into the kitchen and over to the table by the other set of doors that were always left open and plucked the corkscrew from the piles of empty, dirty dishes they'd left there from dinner. She walked up behind Faith and ran a hand up her tense arm. She placed a soft kiss on her shoulder before she reached around and placed the corkscrew in one of Faith's hands.

"It was on the table," Buffy whispered. "I left it there when we opened that bottle we had at dinner."

Faith chuckled as she turned around and wrapped her arms around Buffy, the corkscrew and the bottle of wine suddenly forgotten as their lips met in a heated kiss. Buffy pushed her up against the counter, her hands roaming, grasping wherever she could touch. She gasped as Faith's hands slipped under the edge of her dress and she roughly yanked down her panties as she spun Buffy around and slammed her against the counter.

Eager, desperate hands slid between Buffy's legs and she lifted her left leg and wrapped it around Faith's hip, deepening the kiss as Faith's skillful fingers slipped over her with practiced ease. She gasped and moaned as Faith deftly slid two fingers inside of her, moving them slowly, burying them to the hilt every time. She parted from Faith's lips, groaning as Faith lifted her up on to the counter and spread her legs, her lips going straight back to Buffy's as the full, unopened bottle of wine teetered and then fell to the floor, smashing the instant that it hit, but neither cared, neither barely noticed. They were far too lost in one another to care about anything else.

* * *

The yacht rocked slightly against the gentle waves and he stood on the top deck, watching the little island much like he'd done for most of the day. His face was hidden beneath the shadows of the hood pulled up over his head and he cleared his throat as he turned to the man faithfully standing at his side.

"It is time."

"But, sir, we lack reinforcements. Ever since the slayer killed—"

"I think a little surprise visit is long overdue and well in order, no?"

"Mr. Yareli—"

"Stay behind if you must, Josef. I shall pay our two slayers a surprise visit. No need to worry. If they are successful say if they choose to attack," Tarek chuckled as he pulled down his hood. "I always come back."

"Al—always, sir?"

Tarek nodded his head slowly and turned his attention back to the small island. "You're still quite new, I keep forgetting," he said and he turned to Josef again. "Have you thought of my proposition?"

"I have," Josef nodded nervously. "Must I give you your answer now, sir, or—"

"Ah, it can wait," Tarek replied, waving him off as he walked down the short flight of stairs and to the back of the deck. "Josef, do check on the captain. I would quite like to eat upon my return and I like my food to beg for its life as I do."

"Yes, sir."

Tarek watched Josef disappear inside before he reached for the delicate looking crossbow that sat on the bench seat. Plucking out a single arrow, he touched the tip with his finger, grinning as it pierced through his skin easily. He wouldn't need anything more than just one arrow to send his message across. It wasn't meant for one or the other, their death would come in time.

He hopped into the small rubber boat and untied the ropes quickly. The motor ran quiet as he pulled the cord and he licked over his lips as he steered the boat towards the small island. He had plans to eradicate the entire slayer line, saving the original Chosen one's for the very last. He liked to play games, sadistic, drawn out games. He lived for the lust of the chase and the burn of the fight. There was nothing like fighting a slayer and Buffy had been the first who caught him off guard, staked him for the first time in over five hundred years.

Magic flowed through his undead veins, magic that kept him immortal, indestructible. Magic that could be used to control, to conquer, to induce fear. Chuckling, he pulled his hood back over his head as the boat reached the sandy beach. He quickly shut off the motor and climbed out, pulling the boat up on the beach and out of the water. He grabbed his crossbow with his single arrow and quietly approached the house, moving around to the back where he could hear the two slayer's otherwise preoccupied with one another.

Which made his surprise visit that much better, that much more unexpected if they didn't sense his subtle approach. It was perfect and it made the magic inside of him crackle as the delight filled his very lack of soul.

The soft light flooded out the open doors and onto the deck and the sounds of moaning could be heard more clearly as he took each step across the wooden desk lightly and quietly. As the two slayers came into view, a sly grin curled over his lips and he loaded the arrow into the small crossbow and aimed for the wall just above the blonde haired slayers head.

"Mors erit. Et sanguis in manibus reddam tibi," he whispered before releasing the arrow, watching the tip glow red as it sailed quietly through the air and inside the house.

Tarek stayed hidden in the shadows, watching as the arrow sunk deep into the wall, his message flowing out against the wall with his blood. The two slayers gasped as they backed away from the wall, watching the words as they magically soaked through the plaster, one letter at a time, and he could almost taste the fear in the blonde haired slayer and the rage in the other.

The one he was so eager to meet. The one he'd heard such great things of, how evil had tinged her soul and how the darkness still lived inside of her, buried needlessly beyond walls that came from her need to find redemption.

Maybe he wouldn't kill her at all. He could have much better use for a slayer of her stature. But she was lost to love, to the good over evil. It was nothing a little magic couldn't change. Chuckling, he stepped forward. It was time for his little surprise to come to fruition.

* * *

Faith panted heavily as she stared at the words written on the wall. Her Latin was rusty, really rusty, but she recognized it as just that. She turned to Buffy, who had lost all color in her face and she reached for the arrow imbedded in the plaster wall. She pulled it out and within seconds it disintegrated in her hand and blood pooled in her palm, blood that was cold and sticky.

"What the hell?" Faith muttered under her breath as Buffy shook her head.

"It can't be."

"What is it, Buffy?" Faith asked as she stared into Buffy's eyes, eyes that were wide and full of fear and shock, eyes that weren't looking at her, but over her shoulder at something else. Someone else. Turning around, Faith looked at the hooded figure lingering in the open doorway, his face hidden beyond the shadows of the hood, but even she could see the eyes as they glowed dimly. "Who the hell are you?"

"Such insolence," he said lowly, his accent unrecognizable and very heavy. "Have all manners been lost in this day and age? How unfortunate and disappointing this world has become."

"Take one more step, buddy, and you're in for a world of pain. Get out," Faith said through clenched teeth and she grabbed the butcher knife out of the blood and gripped it tight. "Not gonna ask you twice."

Whoever this guy was, he clearly had Buffy trembling in fear. She could tell from the tight yet trembling grip that Buffy had on her shoulders as she stood behind her. All Faith knew was he'd interrupted them, invaded their privacy, set foot where he was not welcome. And she wasn't happy. She was _pissed_.

"Faith—"

"Who the hell are you?" Faith asked as he stepped fully inside. She watched as he pulled back his hood and saw the grin curl over his lips. "If you're so up on the up about manners, asshole, you should know that it's impolite to enter without being invited."

"I don't need an invitation to a place where I am welcome."

"Think you've got a few wires crossed there—"

"Faith, that's him," Buffy whispered from behind her.

"Who?"

"Tarek."

"Huh?" Faith blinked and she turned her attention back to their intruder.

He stepped a little bit closer, stopping short as he was just an arms length away. "Your fear is refreshing, Miss. Summers. I quite like the taste of it. It's delicious," he sneered and Faith shrugged Buffy's hands off her shoulders, growing increasingly impatient as her nerves stood on an edge. "And you, Miss. Lehane, your anger tastes even better than I ever imagined it would."

"You know who we are, but I don't know who the hell you are," Faith said and she struggled against Buffy who was trying to pull her back. "So, make with the introductions, Mr. Manners."

"I am Tarek Yareli," he said slowly, extending a hand to Faith's, who refused the gesture.

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?"

"It will."

"Faith—"

"Don't care who you are, Tarek Yareli, but you're—"

"In for a world of pain, as you said, yes," he finished for her, further firing up the burning anger she was feeling. She suspiciously eyed his left hand that had been behind his back since he entered the kitchen and he chuckled lowly as he pulled his hand out from behind his back, producing an unloaded crossbow. "Aren't you curious about my message?"

"Don't give a fuck about your message right now," Faith growled. "I want you out and off this fucking island. I told you I ain't gonna ask twice!"

"Ah, but you have," he laughed again.

"What's your problem, asshole?"

"Faith, don't—"

"Don't what, B? Huh? Who the hell is this guy anyway? You know him?"

"He's the vampire I staked in London, the one who sent that gang of vampires after me. The ones you—you saved me from," she whispered, her voice trembling as she tried to use Faith as a cover. Faith, not having any of it, yanked herself free of Buffy's hold. "Faith, I _staked_ him. Don't you understand? He's supposed to be dust."

Faith blinked and suddenly it made sense why Buffy was so afraid of him. Buffy was never afraid of anything, not vampires or demons or anything else she came face to face with. Tarek Yareli wasn't just a vampire, he was something else entirely and she watched as the soft blue light crackled from his fingertips as he rubbed them together. Magic. Of course it had to be magic.

"Tornar-se visível," Buffy whispered and Faith felt the spell the shaman in Brazil had cast upon her dissipate from all around her.

"Buffy—"

"I had to. We need her to—"

"You think your red-headed witch can help you fight me?" Tarek laughed and Faith used that moment to catch him off guard, swiping at him with the knife she knew was useless against him.

The tip of the butcher's knife barely nicked his arm and he grabbed on to Faith's wrist, twisting her arm around quickly and hard. She yelled out in pain, not expecting him to be as strong as he was and she let go of the knife, tears stinging her eyes as he twisted harder, her arm on the verge of breaking. She reeled her left hand back and punched him hard in the stomach, giving her just enough precious seconds to tear away from his tight hold and the vice-like grip he'd had on her wrist. Shaking off her throbbing arm and the pain that came with it, she backed away, looking for something to use against him. Behind her, Buffy was chanting softly and Faith knew she was no doubt trying to reach out to Willow using what little magic she'd picked up over the years.

Tarek lunged for her and she thrust an open palm forwards and into his nose. She moved quickly to get away from him and to keep him from going after Buffy. Yet, as he wiped the blood that trickled out of his nose and laughed, Faith had a feeling he wasn't there to fight.

"What game you playing at, Tarek?" Faith asked as he started to back up towards the open doorway. "Came all this way to do what? Send us a message written in blood we can't even read. What's the point in that, huh?"

"I thought you didn't care what the message says?" Tarek said, his tone teasing. Mocking.

Faith stepped forward and quickly leaned down to pick up the knife she'd had before. Killing him wasn't an option. Buffy said herself she'd staked him back in London and if that was the case, how could he come back from being dust? What kind of magic was he working with? He was wrong about one thing, they did need Willow's help and not in the way he was thinking.

She flicked her attention back to Buffy for a moment and she just stood there, silent and unmoving. With a heavy sigh, she spun back around and roundhouse kicked Tarek out the back door. She went right after him, her bare feet thudding softly against the wooden deck and she grabbed the front of his jacket and yanked him to his feet.

"What are you really doing here?"

"You do not know, do you?" Tarek replied and he shoved Faith away from him. "So lost in your own little world with your lover that you have no idea how many have been lost in just a few short days, do you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"All those pretty little girls," Tarek chuckled dryly and he licked over his lips as he pulled his hood back up, his face now hidden beyond shadows again. "Picked them off far too easily if I say so myself. One by one, each will fall until all that is left is you and your lover. Shall I let her watch you die or do you want to save her the heartbreak and die last, Slayer? Which shall it be?"

Her heart was racing so fast she could hear it loudly in her head, her ears ringing as the rage flooded through her. She gripped on to the handle of the knife tighter and she lunged for him, diving out to tackle him to the ground and at the very last second, that fraction of a second before impact, an arrow whizzed just past her shoulder and pierced his chest.

Faith fell to the ground and watched as he turned to dust with that eerily creepy smile curled over his lips. She coughed as she scrambled to get back up on her feet and she spun around to see Buffy standing in the doorway, the crossbow still held up and aiming where Tarek had just been standing. Her hands were shaking as Faith approached her and she gently took the crossbow out of her hands.

"B, what'd you go and do that for? I had him!"

"I wanted him gone," she whispered. "He'll come back like last time, but I—"

Faith dropped the crossbow, the one that Tarek had brought along to shoot that magic arrow into the wall and wrapped her arms around Buffy. She had no idea what had just happened or what the hell was really going on. And she felt so guilty for taking off with Buffy, holing up on an island in paradise when there was clearly something big unfolded that they were both completely unaware of.

"What's got you so spooked about him, B?"

"I killed him in London. We fought for a while and he was the hardest kill I've had in a long time. I should've know there was magic behind his power, his strength. I didn't think that he—that he'd come back. How can he come back? He was gone, he was _dust_, Faith."

"Shit, I ain't got a clue. Must be some kind of a spell or something," Faith said quietly as she backed away from Buffy and ran her fingers through her hair. "We gotta get off this island, B."

* * *

Willow groaned, the throbbing pain in her head distracting her from her work. She idly reached for her cup of tea and sipped it slowly, the liquid still too hot. Always too hot or cold, never in between. She'd been holed up in her office all afternoon, not researching, but sorting through the piles of paperwork she'd neglected for days on an end. Status reports that needed to be signed off, patrol rosters that needed to be finalized before the start of the next week, class changes and requests for transfers from some senior slayers, not just in Cleveland, but elsewhere.

"Honey, are you still working?" Kennedy asked as she stepped into her office. She frowned when Willow just blankly stared at her before she picked up the last sheet of paperwork. "It's after nine, Will. Come home with me?"

"I need to finish."

"Can't it wait until the morning?"

"No."

"Are you still upset for what I—"

"No, it's over and done with now, Kennedy and I—" Willow gasped as she was hit by a dizzy spell. "Whoa, spinny."

"Will?" Kennedy rushed to her side and caught her as she slipped out of her chair. "What's wrong, honey? Willow? What just happened?"

"I—I don't know. Just felt dizzy all of a sudden, like I was about to faint."

"You kind of did for a second."

Willow laughed weakly and allowed Kennedy to take her over to the couch to lie down. She closed her eyes and couldn't help but smile as Kennedy placed a pillow gently under her head. And then she was hit by a voice, specifically Buffy's voice and it wasn't just her imagining it. Buffy was reaching out for her and even though she couldn't make out what she was trying to say, she knew that she was in trouble. She and Faith were in trouble and they needed her help.

Willow opened her eyes and stared at Kennedy for a moment. She was too weak to do the teleporting spell she had yet to perfect, but she wasn't going to let that stop her from trying. The problem she had was that Kennedy would stop her if she knew what she was doing. Even then, the thought of trying to use it to get to wherever Buffy and Faith were, it made her tummy rumbly. As much as she wanted to do it, she knew she _shouldn't_. A simple locator spell would be easier and safer.

"What's going through that head of yours?" Kennedy asked softly as she ran a finger over Willow's furrowed brow.

"Buffy was reaching out to me."

"Are you sure?"

Willow nodded. "A hundred percent sure. I think Tarek found them."

"What makes you think that?"

"He sent a text to Faith's phone intended for me. There was a—a picture of the two of them on a beach somewhere. He said that they were next."

"Why would he send it to Faith's phone?"

"I don't know, Kenny! He's playing a game, he has to be. I think he's trying to screw us around, make us even more confused than we already are. If he's found them…oh Goddess, what if something has happened to them? To Faith?"

"What do you want to do?" Kennedy asked as Willow sat up slowly. "Honey?"

"I need a map."

"What good is a locator spell going to be? You tried that before and it didn't work because—"

"Kennedy, please, can you just find me a map? I just need to know they're not dead."

Kennedy sighed and searched through the drawers in Willow's desk for a map while Willow moved to get up from the couch slowly, her head still feeling light and fuzzy. She grabbed what she needed out of her cabinet full of magical supplies and watched as Kennedy laid the map down in the middle of the floor. She stepped back while Willow concentrated. She closed her eyes and threw the sand on top of the map and waited.

A few seconds passed before two very dim dots appeared south of Puerto Rico. Two. She sighed in relief as she used her foot to brush the sand off the map before it started to burn. She felt like laughing, like crying, like celebrating. She was feeling too many things at once, but she knew that relief she was feeling would be short-lived.

Until Faith was home and brought Buffy back with her, she'd be on edge, just as they all had been for the last five years Buffy had been gone.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER FIVE**

Faith stood outside on the curb, trying and failing to hail a taxi. The weather was a stark contrast to what they'd spend just a few short days in, the rain was cold and wet, the air much colder and drier. She shivered as she pulled her jean jacket closed and whistled again at a passing cab, it not even slowing down as it passed her.

"Shit!" Faith sighed loudly as she turned to look back at Buffy who had taken cover just inside the doors. She shook her head no and walked back inside, the rain droplets dripping from her now damp hair and clothes. "What's it take to get a taxi around here, huh?"

"Can't you call someone?"

"B, you said so yourself on the plane you weren't exactly ready to face them yet. Kind of took that as a hint that you wanna delay this homecoming to a home that you've never been to for as long as possible. Thought taking a cab would suffice."

Buffy raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. Faith groaned and dug out her pack of smokes from the inside of her jacket. "I'm just gonna, you know, go find a slightly drier spot and have a smoke. Maybe we might have a little more luck getting a cab if we called for one?"

Buffy nodded and headed for the row of pay phones not far from the door. Faith eyed their luggage for a moment and shrugged. She stepped back outside in the rain and walked down the sidewalk until she found an area specifically designated for smokers. It was dry and smokey, cigarette butts overflowed out of the trashcan looking ashtray and littered the ground. Her smoke was a quick one and she headed back inside, shoving her hands in her pockets as she walked over to where Buffy was standing.

"I called three different companies, all their lines were busy."

"It's the rain," Faith muttered and she shook her head. "Got another quarter on you, B?"

"Who are you going to call?" Buffy asked nervously.

"A friend," Faith replied and she idly scratched at the back of her neck. "Nobody you know, don't worry, okay?"

Buffy just nodded and handed Faith a quarter. She almost wished she hadn't mailed her phone back home when they were in London before they caught the first flight they could to Brazil. She slipped the quarter into the machine and quickly dialed a familiar number and waited for the call to go through.

"Hello?"

"Yo, Nadia, it's me," Faith said and the happy laughter on the other end of the line made her smile. "I need a favor, stat."

"Of course," Nadia replied lightly. "What do you need, Faith?"

"Can you get your hands on some wheels?"

"Uh, not exactly that easy with the storm and all."

"What about the spare set in my office?"

"It's been locked since you left."

"Shit, that's right," Faith groaned. "Okay, don't say a word to anyone else, but I'm at the airport with Buffy and we're kinda stranded at the moment. She's not exactly ready to face 'em yet, so I thought an unfamiliar face would be…easier for her."

"I'll ask around, see if someone will let me borrow a car. I have a feeling I can't ask any of _them_, can I?"

"Too many questions you don't wanna be asked right now by them, Nadia."

"Right, okay. Wait, why are you calling from a pay phone?"

"I'll call ya back in half an hour and you can let me know if you got a set of wheels or not, okay?" Faith said, ignoring her question completely.

"Okay," Nadia said after a hesitant moment of silence between them. "I'll try my best, Faith."

"You always do, don't you?"

"I am, after all, your self-proclaimed protégé, am I not?" Nadia laughed and Faith laughed along with her, choosing that moment to hang up the phone.

Checking the time on the departures and arrivals board, she walked back over to Buffy and took a seat on the bench next to her. Buffy didn't say a word, neither did she, yet she smiled warmly as Buffy reached for her hand and intertwined their fingers before she laid her head down on Faith's shoulder, sighing softly as they sat there and waited.

* * *

Willow hesitantly scanned over the small cabinet filled with keys to most of the vehicles that belonged to Headquarters. When Nadia came to her asking to borrow a car, she hesitated until she was given answers. Nadia, a girl barely that of seventeen, asking to borrow a vehicle out of the blue was fairly suspicious. But, as she knew she trusted her personal advisor and Faith's protégé not to withhold information, she quickly learned that Faith had contacted her, asking to be picked up from the airport and not to let _them_ know she was doing just that.

Everyone had their secrets they carried it seemed, Nadia being one of them, playing on both sides for the longest time without anyone but herself and Willow knowing it. But the girl knew now and it worried Willow that she'd lose her young advisor, but she had faith in her. She had a level head and a strong will to fight on the side of good, no matter what it took to stay near the top where she ended up.

"I appreciate you coming to me," Willow said as she plucked the keys to an older car, a 1998 Ford Explorer, the red one, and one of Faith's favorite, aptly called the Killer. Appropriately named as it was Faith's go to vehicle when she took the younger slayers out on routine patrols.

"I don't like lying to her."

"I know, but if it gets them home, then that's all that matters," Willow replied and she turned around and dropped the spare keys to the Explore in Nadia's waiting, outstretched hand. "I know you want to know exactly what is going on here and I will tell you everything that I know, I—"

"You want them home first," Nadia replied, nodding in understanding. "Faith will want me to take them to her place."

"And you will," Willow said. "And you will drop them off and leave, returning here without a word. I want you to come straight to me when you get back."

"I will."

"I'll see to it that you are compensated for your discreet loyalty."

"Does that mean I'm going to get that flat screen TV for my room I've been asking for?"

Willow laughed, nodding although uncertain she'd be able to talk Giles into providing such a thing to one of their senior slayers. She watched as Nadia turned on her heels and walked out of her office, a certain bounce in her step as she left.

She had known since the night before that Faith and Buffy were returning, yet she kept it to herself, not wanting to walk through the halls listening to the whispers, the rumors that would no doubt follow. For now, Buffy returning needed to be kept quiet until they heard from Buffy herself her story, her reasons for leaving and staying gone. The others, most knew only of her from stories some of the girls that had been with them in Sunnydale had told them. Her name forever floated in the whispers in the hallways, whispers that quieted whenever Willow or the others passed on through, whispers that had kept Willow's drive strong over the years, searching and waiting for Buffy to come home.

For the first time since she'd heard that Faith was with Buffy, that she'd been lying to all of them almost right from the start, she picked up her phone and called Giles. It was time he knew.

* * *

"There's our ride," Faith said as she spotted the red Explorer come to a stop about twenty feet down the road from where they sat inside. "Figures. She brought the Killer."

"The what now?"

"Use it to take the young slayers in training out on patrol," Faith replied and she grabbed both her bag and Buffy's before rising to her feet.

"There's so much you've never told me."

"Cos you never wanted to know, B. You told me that much many, many times. You didn't want to know what was going on in Cleveland, so I never said a word."

Buffy frowned and she followed Faith out the doors, watching as she hailed down the driver of the red Explore and watching as it came to a sudden halt, the breaks screeching loudly over the din of noise the filled the air. In just forty-five minutes, she'd heard the short story of who Nadia was, how she'd been there since shortly after Headquarters was officially open for business so to speak. Faith trusted this girl, barely a day over seventeen but wise beyond her years, as Faith described her. She was also described as a mirror image of Faith at that age, only without tripping over the darkness that Faith had a taste of. But what Buffy didn't expect when she saw the girl in question hop out from the drivers side, was that she looked like she could pass off as a twin of Faith, only if one squinted just right and didn't know Faith's features as well as she did.

Buffy watched closely at their interaction, huffing in disbelief as they fist bumped each other as a greeting—fist bumped! What was Faith, twelve? Buffy did, however, offer a friendly smile as Nadia rushed around to the passenger side, opening up the back door for her in a gesture she hadn't expected. She climbed inside, noting straight off the bat why Faith had called it the Killer. Stakes were strapped to the back of the front seats in all different sizes. Her foot bumped against a long broadsword that sat not too aptly hidden under the front passenger seat. She could only just imagine was the back looked like and she briefly took a glance, her attention stolen by Faith as she tossed their bags in the bag and winked at her.

"Is she even old enough to drive?" Buffy whispered as Faith climbed into the seat next to her.

"She's seventeen. She's got a license. All the girls who are of age get it straight off. Comes in handy, you know? Cleveland is bigger than Sunnydale and the cemeteries are pretty spread out. Wheels are pretty much needed on patrol," Faith replied and she smiled at Buffy as she casually leaned in for a quick kiss. "Nadia is cool, B."

"Just like you've only been saying for the last, what, hour?"

"Forty minutes tops."

"Maybe more like forty-five or so, but who is counting?" Buffy laughed, trying to break the tension she sensed was growing between them out of nowhere.

"Where to, Faith?" Nadia asked once she'd climbed in behind the wheel.

"Home, Jeeves."

Neither missed the glare Nadia shot at Faith in the review mirror before the two of them burst out laughing. Yet, despite the light-heartedness Buffy saw between the two, she couldn't shake the nerves that was the only thing she could feel at the moment. Faith had explained to her that she had her own place, but Dawn lived just down the street in the same building as Willow and Kennedy, Xander not too far from them with his fiancé and Giles just around the corner from him. With her nerves piling up, the anxiety was beginning to take a toll on her in ways she hadn't seen coming. It was everything she felt over the years whenever she thought of coming home. And she hated that feeling.

It made her want to jump out of the car and run. Yet, when she glanced over at Faith, the idea of running was almost forgotten. She knew, deep down, she couldn't live a life without her now and she wasn't going to risk losing her because she couldn't face the fear that had built up since the night she'd left. Nothing else struck her with such fear like seeing the ones who used to love her, care about her, the ones who stood so faithfully by her side for years before she left them.

"You okay?" Faith asked quietly as Nadia drove through the heavy traffic leaving the airport. Buffy sat stock still and slowly turned her head to look over at Faith. "Look, you don't gotta see any of them today. I know you're not ready, B."

"I'm sensing a "but" here."

"This thing with Tarek, I gotta find out what the hell is going on and we can't just sit around and wait, you know?" Faith said, keeping her voice low. Buffy just nodded slowly. "I'll help you get settled in and what not, but I gotta head over to HQ stat and find out what they know about this frigging messed up sitch we're suddenly balls deep in."

Buffy flicked her eyes to the back of Nadia's head, but she wasn't paying attention, her focus on the road ahead of her and the cars constantly trying to move in and cut them off. Somewhere in the last couple of minutes since they'd gotten in the car, Faith's arm had found its way casually slung over the back of the seat behind her and she was siting as close as she could manage without actually being in Buffy's lap.

Faith moved to lean forward, talking to Nadia once they were out of the heavy traffic and on the highway. She and Nadia talked about a lot of things that Buffy didn't understand or know about. There was talk of classes, rosters, how Kennedy had been filling in for Faith—and that turned out to be something that made Faith both laugh and sneer over. All the while, Buffy's hand had made it's way to rest idly on her back, fingers gently stroking over the soft, tanned skin where her t-shirt had ridden up a little.

The conversation between the two was strictly work casual, Buffy noticed, but she also noticed that Faith was concerned about Nadia and how she'd been holding up since she'd been gone. Their voices faded as Buffy looked out the window, watching at they drove out of the city and out to the suburbs. She'd been near Cleveland just to see Faith before, many times, but she'd never actually been in the city, or anywhere near the suburbs. Yet, this was Faith's home now—and it was hers now too—but she wondered if, after spending so long being everywhere else, would it ever truly feel like home to her too?

"We're here," Faith said softly as she turned to Buffy with a smile on her face. "Where'd you go off to, B? You've been pretty quiet."

"Just…thinking."

Faith pressed her lips together and stared at Buffy thoughtfully. "You ain't thinking of hitting the pavement soon as we stop, are ya?"

"No," Buffy said, her voice wavering, unconvincing. "No," she said again, a little stronger this time and she smiled at Faith. "I'm not going to run."

As the Explorer came to a sudden stop in front of a low-rise apartment building, Faith chose that moment to pull her in for a sweet, passionate kiss, one that made her head spin and made it easier to ignore the giggle that came from the driver's seat. When Faith parted from the kiss first, she just winked at Buffy before pushing the door open and climbed out. Buffy sat still momentarily as she watched Faith stretch out her arms over her head, the rain still coming down but not nearly as hard. She waited until Faith had their bags out of the back before politely thanking Nadia for picking them up and with a simple goodbye, she climbed out of the Explorer and shut the door. She ran with Faith to the front entrance of the building and waited as she fumbled with her keys to get the door open.

The building itself was nice, much nicer than Buffy had expected it to be when she thought about it. Then again, she never really did think about the life Faith had in Cleveland, her mind and thoughts always otherwise preoccupied whenever they were together. Faith led the way inside and towards the set of stairs near the back of a long hallway.

"Uh, so I'm not sure how ya feel about staying with me and if that's something you don't want, I'm sure we can figure out a place for you to—"

"Do you want me to stay with you?" Buffy asked her, following her up the stairs while hanging back a little just to get a delicious view of Faith's fabulous ass that looked beyond amazing in the tight jeans she wore.

"Don't want to make you feel like you gotta or anything."

"That's not an answer, Faith."

Faith sighed and kept climbing up the stairs, stopping when she reached the top floor and she turned left. She didn't stop until the last door at the end of the hallway and dropped their bags to the floor. "How about you check the place out before you make a decision, yeah? It's not like I got two bedrooms and I don't know how you feel—"

"Faith," Buffy said as she wrapped her arms around Faith's neck and smiled at her. "Technically we've been together for five years. I hardly don't think that me staying here and in your bed is, um, moving too fast. Is it moving too fast?"

Faith shrugged, but she was smiling, so it didn't throw Buffy off too much. "How about we give it a trial run first? What do you think?"

"Okay. Trial run it is."

They sealed their decision with a kiss that bordered between sweet and steamy, and it was a kiss that had Buffy fired right up in a matter of seconds. The things that Faith could do to her with just a kiss. It never failed to surprise her.

Though the mounting pressure when it came to seeing the others again was still there, for just a few minutes she thought of nothing else other than Faith. Reluctantly they pulled apart and Faith unlocked the door, the key sticking when she tried to pull it out.

"Guess I'll have to get another set made for you, huh?" Faith asked and she pushed the door open. "It sticks sometimes, but the landlord won't change the lock. He's a bit of a dick, but just stay outta his way and everything'll be five by five."

"Okay," Buffy laughed and Faith motioned for her to go inside first. It was dark, all the drapes had been shut over the windows and she jumped a little as Faith quickly hit the switch and the light near the doorway turned on.

It was a simple studio apartment, spacious and sparsely decorated. Buffy sure didn't miss the huge big screen TV that hung on the wall and the black leather couch positioned barely five feet away. The bed was on the far wall near the bathroom and the kitchen was simple and near the entrance. It was clean, too, but it wasn't like she expected it to be a mess. Faith had mentioned before she hated clutter and being in the place she called home, Buffy could see that she'd been serious about that.

"Well, what do ya think? Ya want a tour?"

"I think I can see everything from here just fine, thanks."

"Hey!" Faith laughed as she slammed the door shut and wrapped her arms around Buffy's waist.

"It's nice, Faith. It's so—"

"Not what you were expecting?"

"No," Buffy smiled as she found herself being backed up as Faith waited for her answer. "It's so you, Faith."

"Oh yeah?"

Buffy nodded and Faith laughed again, their lips easily finding their way back to each other, but it wasn't long before Buffy pushed her back, remembering that she was supposed to go find out what the others knew about Tarek. "Faith," Buffy sighed as Faith was resilient, trying in vein to keep on kissing her despite. "Faith, aren't you supposed to go and—"

"Been home for like five minutes, B, and you're already trying to get me to leave?"

"Faith…"

"I need a shower and a change of clothes first," she said and she let go of Buffy and shrugged out of her damp jacket. "I don't know about you, but traveling all day makes me feel…" she trailed off and shuddered, winking at Buffy as she backed her way through the apartment. "You can join me if you want to. I'm sure you want to freshen up too."

Buffy kicked off her shoes and pulled off her own jacket. Faith sure didn't have to ask her twice. At least a shower and a little bit of fun thrown in there would definitely keep her mind off of everything else. It was exactly what she needed to keep her feet firmly planted in Cleveland and to not succumb to that nagging feeling that wanted her to grab her bag and run out of there as fast and as far as she could.

But she couldn't do that to Faith, she couldn't break her heart because she wasn't ready to be there yet. She'd just have to suck it up as best as she could, find that strength that she used to have when things got messy and just plow through it the way she used to. Easier said than done.

* * *

It was dark and damp, but the smell of the cave was all too familiar, from the moss that clung to the walls, to the faintest taste of saltwater that drifted in the air through the many tunnels that led out to the North Atlantic ocean. His resurrection always took place there, it was where he granted himself the birth of immortality. While it was almost like a home, it was too far from where he needed to be and he cursed as he climbed out of the black pool of water. Josef was there waiting, towel in hand. As his most resent aid and selection to become one for all eternity, Josef was loyal and obedient. He had been a non-believer until his first resurrection in many hundreds of years.

"Sir," Josef nodded as Tarek wrapped the dingy grey towel around his soaked body. "I was waiting for you this time, as I promised I would after I refused to believe the last time."

"How many days have passed?"

"Seventy hours, sir."

Tarek growled as he walked over to where the wood wardrobe sat and he pulled out a simple pair of pants and a white button down shirt. Josef turned quickly as he dropped the towel and dressed. Seventy hours. _Seventy hours_. Tarek let out a roar, slamming the wardrobe door shut loudly.

"Sir, I—I have a car waiting," Josef trembled as Tarek searched for a suitable pair of shoes on the rack that lined up near the wardrobe. "An—and a small jet fueled and waiting at a private air strip a few miles from here."

"And where are they now?" Tarek asked, selecting a smart and sensible pair of loafers and slipped them on. "Do you know?"

"Cleveland, Ohio, sir."

Tarek grinned as he ran his fingers through his wet hair. "I will never understand why they chose that desolate, unfortunate place. Surely, there is another Hellmouth that would suit their needs."

"Y—yes, surely."

"Then again, Cleveland _does_ have the most demonic activity, more so than the world has ever seen before. I supposed we have _her_ to thank for that, don't we?"

"Because of the collapse of the Sunnydale Hellmouth?"

"Yes, Josef, because of that," Tarek replied, annoyed with the man already and beginning to second-guess his proposition that he had yet to hear the answer to. He wasn't in the mood to ask again or to hear Josef's answer. He was feeling rigid and hungry, more so than ever before. Resurrection did take a toll on him, but as always since he'd cast the spell upon himself, he always bounced right on back. After a good meal, that was. "And whatever did happen to my dinner from the other night?"

"Bound and waiting in the jet for you, sir."

"Excellent, Josef. However did I luck out on finding a man of your stature, such a man of loyalty and willingness to go above and beyond?"

"You, uh—" Josef stammered and cleared his throat, regaining his posture. "My family was killed, sir. In exchange for my loyalty and service to you, you spared my life."

Chuckling, Tarek nodded and licked over his lips. Unlike most vampires, he wasn't. Impervious to sunlight and death, nothing stood in his way. He was a man who got whatever he wanted by all means possible, no guilt, only pleasure. Evil flowed through is veins and the world was his oyster. There was no end to the games he liked to play, and the games he was playing with the slayers was just the beginning. He snapped his fingers at Josef and watched as the tall, thin man scurried his way over to an open suitcase and pulled out a double vested jacket that was protected in a garment bag.

"Thank you, Josef," Tarek grinned as he slipped the freshly pressed jacket on and smoothed down the front. "This jet you say is waiting for me, wherever did you get it?"

"Wolfram and Hart, sir. I contacted one of the senior partners at the firm in London, as you advised if a situation such as this arose. They were all too happy to provide the use of a private jet for you," Josef replied. "They offered other services as well. The itinerary is waiting in the jet for you along with your dinner."

"Other services as well? How delightful," Tarek grinned and he walked over to Josef and casually slung an arm over tense shoulders. "Have you truly made a decision yet, Josef?"

"I have."

"And?"

"I'm at a crossroads," he replied in a confident voice that Tarek wasn't used to hearing from him. It unnerved him. Agitated him. Almost made him want to make him the appetizer to his dinner that was waiting on the jet for him. "Would I not be of better service in a time like this as human, undetected by the slayers completely, available to infuriate their operation without being suspected? As a vampire with you as my sire, it could surely cause some complications, no?"

"Minor, but yes, yes you are right, Josef. You are better use right now as human. Undetected and the last one they may possibly suspect of anything," Tarek replied and he furrowed his brow as he gripped onto Josef's shoulders. "If we weren't playing this game, what would your decision be? Humor me, Josef. It's been seventy hours and some odd minutes and I am positively bored."

"May I perhaps offer a…distraction?"

"I'm intrigued," Tarek replied. "Go on."

"A lot of myth here ties into other worlds, other dimensions. As a man of many talents, you could project said mythologies, distract them, torture them until they are…attainable."

"What are you suggesting, Josef?"

"A summoning," Josef replied. "Of a species foreign to this dimension. A loyal species. Ones that will play your game the way you like it."

"Again, I am intrigued. Whatever did you have in mind?"

As Josef revealed his ideas, Tarek grinned in delight. Perhaps his human slave was far more valuable that he ever thought…and the end result was going to be positively delightful.


End file.
